MPF asks Ibama to deny license in Foz do Amazonas – 08/18/2023 – Environment

The MPF (Federal Public Ministry) asked this Friday (18) that Ibama deny Petrobras’ request for reconsideration of granting an environmental license to the oil company to drill in the Foz do Amazonas basin, in Amapá, and stated that it will adopt “measures legal proceedings” if the recommendation is not met.

The president of the environmental agency, Rodrigo Agostinho, had already rejected this year the request for an environmental license made by Petrobras, claiming that the company did not meet the necessary requirements to proceed with the activities, but the company said it would appeal the decision.

The MPF’s recommendation reinforces the content of a document sent by the public body that addressed “inconsistencies” in Petrobras’ license application, including “mistaken assumptions presented by the company, which distort or reduce Ibama’s manifestations in previous opinions”.

Also highlighted was Petrobras’ lack of manifestation on “crucial” aspects for the denial of the license to operate in the basin, said the MPF.

The Foz do Amazonas basin is part of the Brazilian equatorial margin, a wide area of ​​the coast that goes from Rio Grande do Norte to Amapá and also includes the Pará-Maranhão, Barreirinhas, Ceará and Potiguar basins, each region with distinct characteristics.

The entire region is seen as a new oil exploration frontier, with great potential for oil discoveries, but with enormous socio-environmental challenges.

The MPF set a period of ten working days for Ibama to report whether or not the recommendation had been complied with and said that it had forwarded the documents on the measures taken in the case.

“Ibama was also warned that failure to comply with what was recommended will result in the adoption of appropriate judicial measures, for the purposes of correcting the illegalities found and promoting the respective responsibilities that may be configured”, said the public body in a note.

Petrobras did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.