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Brazil: end of protection of sensitive coastal areas

2020-09-28T21:23:46.077Z


The government of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Monday obtained the repeal of the rules which made it possible to preserve the vegetation of the littoral, paving the way according to the ecologists to building buildings on previously protected areas. The previous law, which dated from 2002, defined as "Permanent protection zones (APP)" the mangrove, vegetation typical of tropical coasts, a


The government of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Monday obtained the repeal of the rules which made it possible to preserve the vegetation of the littoral, paving the way according to the ecologists to building buildings on previously protected areas.

The previous law, which dated from 2002, defined as

"Permanent protection zones (APP)"

the mangrove, vegetation typical of tropical coasts, and the

"restinga"

, composed of herbaceous plants that grow on the sand, especially on the dunes.

Read also: Economic policy, security, environment: what does Bolsonaro's Brazil look like?

This decision was taken at a meeting of the National Environment Council (Conama), an advisory body that brings together representatives of the government, NGOs and employers' associations from various sectors of activity, under the chairmanship of the Minister. of the Environment, Ricardo Salles.

A decree of May 2019 completely upset the composition of this council, its members falling from 96 to 23, giving more power to the government when it comes to voting resolutions like those of Monday.

"When Salles changed the operating rules of Conama, he knew that he could thus pass measures contrary to the public interest",

denounced Greenpeace in a

press

release.

"As we reach record levels of environmental devastation in a flaming Brazil, Salles is dedicating her time to promoting more devastation,"

continues Mariana Mota, from the Brazilian branch of Greenpeace, an allusion to the forest fires. which ravage the Amazon and the Pantanal.

For Mario Mantovani, director of SOS Mata Atlantica, an NGO which fights to preserve coastal areas, the repeal of the rules concerning the protection of mangroves and restinga is a

“scandal”

and a

“crime against society”.

“The vegetation of the restinga is essential to fix the dunes and prevent erosion.

Mangroves are essential for marine life.

These areas are already subject to strong pressure from real estate developers and the law of 2002 made it possible to prevent these vegetation from being further destroyed, ”he

told AFP.

Conama also repealed rules on Monday requiring environmental permits for irrigation projects.

Another controversial measure: the authorization to incinerate packaging and pesticide residues in industrial ovens to transform them into cement.

For environmentalists, this allows to bypass the environmental protocol planned to get rid of this kind of waste.

In April, during a ministerial meeting, Ricardo Salles caused a scandal by saying that he intended to take advantage of the fact that the press was

“focused on the coronavirus”

to

“pass reforms and relax the

environmental

rules”

.

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2020-09-28

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