Moraes authorizes studies for Ferrogrão and determines that the Lula government seeks an agreement – 05/31/2023 – Market

Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the STF (Supreme Federal Court), responded to a request from the AGU (Attorney General of the Union) and authorized this Wednesday (31) the resumption of the analysis of studies and administrative processes related to the Ferrogrão work .

The rail project connects Mato Grosso to Pará, has estimated investments of R$ 21.5 billion and is 933 kilometers long, but was suspended by an injunction (provisional decision) by Moraes in March 2021, in an action that questions the change in the boundaries of the Jamanxim National Forest, in Pará, for the passage of the tracks.

In the new decision, Moraes also determines that the request be taken to the Center for Alternative Litigation Solutions, the Supreme body that deals with judicial agreements, so that solutions to the dispute can be presented within 60 days.

“There is no doubt (…) of the importance of the structuring role of the Ferrogrão project, for the outflow of the production of corn, soy, soy bran, soy oil, fertilizers, sugar, ethanol and petroleum derivatives”, said Moraes, citing that there would be a reduction in CO² emissions with its operation and job creation.

The development is under criticism from environmentalists, but last month the government spoke to the STF about the possibility of building it with greater environmental compensation.

In 2021, Moraes suspended a law that resulted from a provisional measure edited by former President Michel Temer (MDB) that changed the boundaries of the Jamanxim National Park.

He justified the suspension to avoid possible irreversible effects on the environment.

“Considering the apparent reduction in the level of environmental protection resulting from the exclusion of about 862 hectares from the Jamanxin National Park, as well as the fact that the issuing of provisional measures does not satisfy the legal requirement in a formal sense for the alteration or modification of matter that the Federal Constitution submitted to a more rigid and stable regime, it seems necessary to recognize the plausibility of the risk”, said Moraes in his decision, at the time.

The suspension request was made to the Supreme by PSOL. The judgment was of interest to the government of former President Jair Bolsonaro (PL), defender of the work, and even entered the Supreme Court’s agenda in June 2022, but ended up not being judged.

Now, she returns to the discussion in the midst of a Lula (PT) government that also defends its viability even with compensation, despite the fact that the work is considered an anti-environmental project, which has been called the “new Belo Monte”.

The Ministry of Indigenous Peoples, led by Sônia Guajajara, who is from the PSOL, opposes the reduction of the area of ​​the Jamanxim National Park for the passage of the railroad.

To the STF, the AGU under Lula, which represents the government’s legal representation, took a position in favor of the enterprise and said that Ferrogrão would not, by itself, be “considered harmful to the environment”.

But he manifested for the overthrow of the law that altered the limits of the Jamanxim forest, pointing out that there was a change, by Congress, in the text that converted Temer’s provisional measure into law.

Before, the text “provided for the due consideration of environmental compensation, which would also lend itself to the preservation of endangered species of Amazonian fauna and flora”, said the AGU. In the conversion, this part was removed.

The AGU also argued that the original text provided for the incorporation of the Tapajós Environmental Protection Area, covering 51,000 hectares, to Jamanxin, which ended up not happening.

However, the organ praises the work. “When completed, and provided that all environmental requirements are observed, the ‘Ferrogão’ will mean high transport capacity and competitiveness in the flow of production through Arco Norte, a role that is currently performed by the BR-163, even making it possible to mitigate traffic of trucks on that highway, providing less emission of greenhouse gases resulting from this traffic”.

The AGU asked the Supreme Court to consider the law unconstitutional, but “allow the regular continuation of administrative processes related to Ferrogrão, including with regard to the updating of studies, observing all legal conditions, including socio-environmental ones”.

Other sectors of the government also defend the work. On the 25th, Transport Minister Renan Filho classified Ferrogrão as a bold investment and said that the government will proceed with the railroad project if the Supreme Court resolves the current legal impasse.

“If the Supreme Court’s decision is to follow, we will follow. If it is to change, we will change what needs to be changed. This has now happened with Petrobras and with several other government segments”, said Renan Filho, in reference to Ibama’s recent refusal for the state-owned company to explore oil at the mouth of the Amazon River.

In deciding this Wednesday, Moraes reaffirmed that “the reduction in the level of environmental protection resulting from the exclusion of approximately 862 hectares from the Jamanxim National Park, during the legislative process of converting Provisional Measure 758/2016, justifies maintaining the suspension of the effectiveness of the Law 13.452/2017”.

However, he said that he considered the government’s new arguments for authorizing the studies and proposing a solution through an agreement for the undertaking.