This article is adapted from AQ’s forthcoming special report on trends to watch in Latin America in 2025 In some towns on the border between Brazil and Bolivia there’s a slight feeling of bitterness among Bolivians towards their Brazilian neighbors Latin Americans are eager to see more regional integration—70% of them are in favor of that But although Brazil borders every country in South America except for two (Ecuador and Chile) it has often struggled to truly engage with them—perhaps because of linguistic differences it’s relevant that Brazil seems poised to deliver on a very old project: the construction of a new bridge between Guajará-Mirim (Brazil) and Guayaramerín (Bolivia) expected to be completed in 2027 at an estimated cost of $70 million “We are beginning a new era in Brazil-Bolivia relations,” Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said during a visit to Bolivia in July 2024 “We are convinced that integration is no longer just rhetoric for election campaign speeches Integration is a necessity for the survival of South American countries.” The history of the project helps illustrate why regional integration in South America while frequently presented as a lofty political goal And its present iteration suggests the extent to which Latin American leaders see integration as a way of connecting not only with each other In the first years of the 20th century the northwestern Amazon region of Brazil, where the state of Acre is now, belonged to Bolivia— but around 100,000 Brazilians lived in the area for years it attracted Brazilian rubber tappers eager to exploit its natural wealth Bolivian maps described that part of the Amazon as tierras non descubiertas—undiscovered lands But as European and North American demand for rubber grew In 1899, the Bolivian government set up a customs office in Puerto Alonso, which today is called Porto Acre, and entered a deal with the U.S.-based consortium Bolivian Syndicate, giving them the right to produce and export rubber It was a way the Bolivians found to gain back control of the territory Armed rubber tappers expelled the Bolivian Army in the Acrean Revolution (1902-03) and twice tried to set up an independent republic had to that point not challenged Bolivia’s official claim of the territory of Acre it decided to defend a negotiated solution in which Acre would be incorporated into Brazilian maps Brazilian and Bolivian diplomats met in Petrópolis and the Treaty of Petrópolis was signed on November 17 Brazil annexed the Acre region—it is no coincidence that the state’s capital is named after the Brazilian diplomat who led the negotiations José Maria da Silva Paranhos do Rio Branco Brazil would grant their neighbors land in the Paraguay River Basin 2 million British pounds and the commitment to build a railway cutting across the Amazon to facilitate Bolivian access to the Atlantic Ocean an important source of rubber at a time of high global demand All of this reinforced the sense that Bolivia had lost a valuable opportunity for economic development as the ceded territory to Brazil progressed at a faster rate than Bolivia’s Amazon region,” said Regiane Bressan associate professor in the International Relations Program at the Federal University of São Paulo—Unifesp The memory of the deal is still fresh in the minds of those who live in border towns in the rubber-producing region of the Amazon. “The bridge today is seen as Brazil finally honoring its debt to Bolivians. This is something you hear in everyday conversation with regular people in the streets,” said Marta Cerqueira Melo an expert on Latin American political economy and integration who has spent the past few years developing her PhD thesis in that very frontier region The bridge project was left in limbo for decades despite repeated attempts by the Bolivian government to revive it under Lula in Brazil and Evo Morales in Bolivia Between 2020 and 2023, the current Bolivian government wrote to then-Brazilian president monthly to try to push construction forward Although the idea of building infrastructure in the Amazon was in line with Bolsonaro’s project for economic development perhaps due to the leftist nature of Bolivia’s government—the success of regional integration in Latin America depends on ideological alignment between governments When Lula came back into office for a third term in 2022 he began implementing the South American Integration Routes project which aims to connect the continent’s countries to both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans Construction of the Mamoré International Bridge is set to begin in the second half of 2025 and details of the tender are still being finalized as of January Brazilian commodities will have a faster way to access the Pacific Ocean passing through Bolivian territory to reach Chilean ports on their way to Asia And Bolivians will get what was agreed in the Treaty of Petrópolis better access to the Atlantic Ocean through Brazilian territory “These infrastructure projects strengthen the notion of greater proximity between Brazil and neighboring countries integration isn’t just a concept—it’s a daily lived experience South American integration has assumed a perspective strictly oriented toward Brazilian foreign trade Today there’s been a shift toward the Asia-Pacific region So the notion of South American integration has been impoverished catering almost exclusively to the interests of Brazil’s agro-export sector,” Cerqueira Melo told AQ The bridge also exposes inherent contradictions and tensions in Lula’s political and economic project Elected with the support of environmental and Indigenous movements the government has had success in halting deforestation in the Amazon but has pursued infrastructure projects that favor agribusiness in the region Cerqueira Melo said another common local concern is crime—on the walls on the Bolivian side of the border one already sees the acronyms of Brazilian organized crime groups Locals say no strategy has been announced from either side on how to keep that from getting worse as the original text of the Treaty of Petrópolis stated “consolidate forever” the “old friendship” and remove “disagreements of ulterior motives,” aiming to “facilitate the development of their commercial and neighborly relations.” But true integration still feels like a more complicated goal to achieve Reading Time: 6 minutesFranco is an editor Americas Quarterly (AQ) is the premier publication on politics We are an independent publication of the Americas Society/Council of the Americas PUBLISHED BY AMERICAS SOCIETY/ COUNCIL OF THE AMERICAS Near the western fringe of the Brazilian Amazon the emerald canopy blankets hundreds of thousands of hectares Tucked into the vast Guajará-Mirim State Park savanna forest stretches for miles before melting into rainforest in a rare encounter of two starkly different ecosystems lush jungle gives way to neat rectangles of charred land and toppled trees The park was created over three decades ago with the aim of shielding the rich biodiversity found in this area which is home to hundreds of plant and animal species – some of which like the black spider monkey (Ateles chamek) It also helped create a mosaic of protected lands in the region forming an important conservation corridor of pristine forest But even though all activity within it is prohibited the Guajará-Mirim park has come under attack this year as invaders rush to illegally clear and claim slices of it 74,598 deforestation alerts have been confirmed in primary forest within the park according to satellite data from the University of Maryland visualized on Global Forest Watch This represents a jump of 465% over the same period last year “This is an area that is under full state protection,” said Larissa Amorim “There shouldn’t be any deforestation within it But we see that it’s under immense pressure – deforestation has sky-rocketed there.” Environmentalists blame land speculators and cattle ranchers for the destruction claiming they are illegally clearing swaths of forest to make way for pastures They say the surge in invasions was largely triggered by a law passed earlier this year which slashed the extent of the Guajará-Mirim Park by roughly 50,000 hectares and reduced another nearby reserve to a sliver The legislation encouraged invaders by signaling that they would soon be able to gain land titles for plots they were illegally deforesting and occupying who leads the Kanindé Ethno-environmental Defense Association an organization that defends the rights of Indigenous people “It was a gift to those committing environmental crimes,” said Cardozo whose organization fought against the reduction of the reserve “It’s as if state [lawmakers] gave a free pass to land grabbers Rondônia’s top court annulled the law last month ruling the reduction of the park’s limits to be unconstitutional Yet the invasions have shown no signs of slowing As the intruders encroach deeper into the forest they are consolidating their land holdings and opening up the broader ecological corridor to invasion while also chipping away at Guajará-Mirim’s protected status Cardozo said in voice messages to Mongabay you can’t justify having a protected park.” The invaders are also inching closer to vulnerable Indigenous and traditional communities in neighboring reserves which have so far been shielded from the destruction according to Naiara Ames De Castro Lazzari a prosecutor with the state attorney general’s office in Rondônia “These populations are often driven out by the invasions – they cannot maintain their livelihood or they fear for their safety,” she said in a phone interview Even though most of the intruders into the park were recent arrivals they were presented as traditional settlers who should be given legal titles to the land who helped challenge the legislation in court “It was a complete misrepresentation of what was happening within the park.” he sealed the fate of the Guajará-Mirim reserve and freed land grabbers to legally exploit the thousands of hectares that now lay outside its boundaries State officials in Rondônia did not respond to a request for comment It didn’t take long for deforestation to explode: in the months that followed ranchers and loggers scrambled to lay claim to slices of the park The destruction continued even as Rondônia’s attorney general – together with Kanindé and other advocate groups – disputed the freshly-approved law in court “It represented the greatest environmental setback in the history of Rondônia,” Andrade said without any prior study of the environmental or social impacts.” sharply criticizing its proponents and ruling that the state cannot simply renounce its duty to protect the environment in the face of invasions “If conflicts are growing…it is because the government has shown itself to be inefficient in protecting these conservation units violating its constitutional duty,” wrote Justice Jorge Ribeiro da Luz The court’s decision represents a major victory sending a clear signal that assaults on environmental protections will not be tolerated But halting the destruction and expelling the intruders has remained a challenge “It sends an important message – it shows any attempt to reduce protected lands has to fall within the realm of legality,” Lazzari said the park is still a target of invaders and deforestation.” “This attempt to remove the invaders has already been met with a lot of violence,” said Rômulo Batista “What this shows us is that those who are invading the park are prepared for anything.” Advocates now plan to ask the courts to order the removal of all invaders from the park while also forcing state authorities to restore the areas that were cleared and burned “It was an important victory – but that ruling alone is not enough to solve the problem,” he told Mongabay over the phone “We want the invaders to be removed from the park That is the only way to stop the destruction of the park.” the tussle over land can be traced back more than half a century The area around it was first settled in the 1970s amid a gold rush that drew hordes of landless workers from other corners of Brazil the gold dwindled and timber began driving the local economy with illegal loggers encroaching deeper into virgin forest in search of profits the Guajará-Mirim park became a target for land grabbers Its limits were redrawn again and again over the years lawmakers slashed more than 50,000 hectares from the reserve giving out land titles to the settlers who had illegally moved into this part of the park arguing that it served as an important emergency route to communities around the park which would otherwise be stranded when the region floods “This park has a long history of being a target for invaders,” said Amorim “And all of these factors have contributed to the intense pressure that we’re seeing today.” the incursions into Guajará-Mirim have only intensified over the last three years fueled by a steady stream of friendly signals from authorities – from local politicians all the way up to the president himself lawmakers have been vocal about their plans to expand agricultural production developing the Amazon rather than protecting it has even defended mining and agriculture on Indigenous lands Rondônia has also joined forces with neighboring Acre and Amazonas states with the aim of creating a new “sustainable development zone” at the intersection of the three states the scheme – dubbed ‘Amacro’ – is widely expected to drive a surge in beef and soy production in this part of the Amazon “We have a political context in Rondônia where environmental protection is seen as a barrier,” said Andrade “They insist on expanding agricultural production at the expense of protected areas It is the most archaic view of economic development.” Since taking office in 2019, Bolsonaro has also slashed budgets for environmental enforcement and moved to obstruct the system of environmental fines by allowing offenders to dispute them. Fines punishing environmental crimes have plunged to their lowest level in 24 years. a representative of Brazil’s Ministry of Environment said that the agency’s budget this year rose by R$270 million ($47.4 million) with the funding “used for the purchase of equipment vehicles and navigation systems.” With this increase the resources aimed at environmental policing rose from R$228 million to R$478 million ($40 million to $83.9 million) in 2021 “The hiring of 739 new civil servants is already planned to expand the staff of Ibama and ICMBio inspectors as a way of strengthening the fight against illegal deforestation,” the Ministry representative said in an email Bolsonaro has also softened his tone recently, vowing during the UN’s climate summit last month to end deforestation in Brazil. The federal government this week pointed to a 19% drop in deforestation for the month of November as proof that it is moving in the right direction “Those who invade protected areas are opportunists – they commit these crimes and expect that their actions will be legalized,” Lazzari said occupying that area in some way may give them some future rights advocates now worry that local politicians – fresh off a defeat in Guajará-Mirim park – may look to weaken environmental protections elsewhere Land grabbers are already shifting to other reserves under state or federal protection land grabbers hope that state or federal lawmakers will eventually grant them amnesty or legalize illicit land claims by redrawing the borders of protected areas “We are certain that further attempts to weaken the environmental protections that we have [for] protected areas will certainly come,” Andrade said “We know that we still have many long battles ahead of us.” Banner image from Planet Labs via Global Forest Watch Editor’s note: This story was powered by Places to Watch a Global Forest Watch (GFW) initiative designed to quickly identify concerning forest loss around the world and catalyze further investigation of these areas Places to Watch draws on a combination of near-real-time satellite data automated algorithms and field intelligence to identify new areas on a monthly basis GFW is supporting data-driven journalism by providing data and maps generated by Places to Watch Mongabay maintains complete editorial independence over the stories reported using this data Feedback: Use this form to send a message to the editor of this post The “fortress conservation” model is under pressure in East Africa as protected areas become battlegrounds over history and global efforts to halt biodiversity loss Mongabay’s Special Issue goes beyond the region’s world-renowned safaris to examine how rural communities and governments are reckoning with conservation’s colonial origins and trying to forge a path forward […] Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article An Indigenous Wari’ boy swims in the Komi Memem River The Amazon city of Guajara-Mirim recently approved a law that designates the river “as a living entity and subject to rights.” (AP Photo/Andre Penner) Wari’ Indigenous leader and councilman Francisco Oro Waram stands at his Wari’ community in Guajara-Mirim Indigenous ride a boat on the Komi Memem River at the Wari’ Indigenous community in Guajara-Mirim The Amazon city of Guajara-Mirim recently approved a law that designates the Laje River “as a living entity and subject to rights."(AP Photo/Andre Penner) This combination of images provided by Planet Labs PBC shows two protected territories that belong to the Wari’ Indigenous people in July 2003 and the same area with signs of deforestation in June 2023 it has been extensively invaded and deforested by land-robbers in the past few years Indigenous leader and councilman Francisco Oro Waram plays with a girl in the Komi Memem River An Indigenous Wari’ girl carries her brother after swimming in the Komi Memem River Members of an Indigenous Wari’ family sit in their house in the community of Guajara-Mirim lies next to a deforested area in Nova Mamore They only returned after the Federal Police went to the locale and retook it according to the Wari’ umbrella organization Wari’ Indigenous women prepare a typical spice named Urucum in Guajara-Mirim An Indigenous Wari’ girl holds a little bird in Guajara-Mirim Wari’ Indigenous grill an armadillo in Guajara-Mirim An Indigenous Wari’ girl smashes corn to prepare food in Guajara-Mirim Indigenous Wari’ children throw out water from a boat in the Komi Memem River Indigenous people play soccer at the Wari’ community in Guajara Mirim An Indigenous Wari’ boy looks to the camera after swimming in the Komi Memem River Indigenous leader and councilman Francisco Oro Waram plays with children in the Komi Memem River an Indigenous leader recently inspired an Amazon city to pass a law granting personhood status to an endangered river 7)(AP Video/Teresa de Miguel/Andre Penner) BRAZIL (AP) — On the banks of the Komi Memem River the activity never ceases: women go down the embankment from Laje Velho village carrying basins to wash clothing while men embark in small canoes on hunting and fishing expeditions it’s the children’s turn to dive into its tea-colored waters the Wari’ people are resorting to a new strategy: the white man’s law the municipality of Guajara-Mirim passed a groundbreaking law proposed by an Indigenous councilman that designates the Komi Memem and its tributaries as living entities with rights ranging from maintaining their natural flow to having the forest around them protected “We are further organizing ourselves to fend off invaders,” councilman Francisco Oro Waram “We can’t fight with arrows; we have to use the laws.” Oro Waram lives with his family in Laje Velho village a 40-minute drive from downtown Guajara-Mirim mostly on paved highway surrounded by pasture heavy machinery was preparing soil for soybean crops which are fast replacing cattle ranching throughout this part of the Amazon in Rondonia state so the elders protect the water,” Oro Waram said of the river “We don’t pollute it or cut the trees that surround it Satellite images show the encirclement of the Indigenous Land Igarapé Lage the federal government has created six non-continuous Indigenous territories has been awaiting the federal government’s approval of the expanded boundaries established by an anthropological study 15 years ago The Wari’ people lived independently until the late 1950s and early 1960s and are the largest group of Chapakuran speakers In the initial years after contact with outsiders three out of five Wari’ died from introduced diseases The population has increased tenfold since then but they now occupy less than one-third of their original territory according to anthropologist Beth Conklin from Vanderbilt University who has worked with them for nearly four decades “The Wari’ value their cosmology and rituals And all of it centers around promoting human thriving in relationships with the non-human and the well-being of your people,” Conklin told the AP “So this law is a 21st century update of these very traditional social ecological values that are at the center of Wari’ culture.” poses a significant threat to the Komi Memem River an invasion by land-robbers has blocked the Wari’ people from accessing their essential fishing grounds the river’s headwaters are located near Guajará-Mirim State Park the river’s tea-colored water turned muddy red “I had never seen it in my lifetime,” said the 48-year-old who blames the episode on rampant illegal deforestation The councilman says that due to pollution from cattle farms and soybean crops his village no longer drinks water directly from the river about 60 armed men invaded Linha 26 village “The loggers entered and divided up the Indigenous land,” Gilmar Oro Nao vice president of the Oro Wari’ association they have nowhere to draw their survival from.” Oro Nao said that the Wari’ don’t trust the National Indian Foundation’s local employees He said there is widespread suspicion that they collaborate with illegal loggers and land-robbers The AP sent emails to the Indian Foundation whose responsibility includes overseeing Indigenous rights said it has opened an investigation on the invasions and has been monitoring the situation The Wari’ hope that the new law giving the river personhood status can help address what they see as inaction of Funai and the Federal Prosecutor’s Office Its main provision creates a committee to monitor the river with a board that would include Indigenous and non-Indigenous members including a representative of the Rondonia Federal University The committee will produce an annual report about the river’s status and propose actions to ensure the rights secured by the new law In an Amazon region where agribusiness has become the economic powerhouse it came as a surprise for many that the law had the unanimous approval of the city council of Guajara-Mirim a city of 40,000 people with more than 90% of its territory inside protected areas It brought visibility to our municipality and sets an example to other cities and Indigenous territories,” said the mayor Raissa Paes Bento Protection of the Komi Memem River is also important for non-Indigenous inhabitants because fishing is a major economic activity and a source of food “It is very good to have it preserved and clean.” one of the six subgroups of the Wari’ people who have inhabited the Western Amazon for centuries this immemorial relationship is under increasing threat The relentless expansion of soybeans and pastures encroaches on their land while land-robbers promote illegal deforestation the Wari’ people are resorting to a new strategy: the white man’s law The law comes as representatives of eight South American governments gather Tuesday and Wednesday in Brazil to discuss ways to preserve the Amazon rainforest to help stave off climate change and protect its Indigenous peoples a tributary of a larger river that’s unprotected is now the first among hundreds of rivers in the Brazilian Amazon to have a law that grants it personhood status This is part of a new legislative approach to protect nature that has made inroads in many parts of the world “We are further organizing ourselves to fend off invaders,” councilman Francisco Oro Waram “We can’t fight with arrows; we have to use the laws.” so the elders protect the water,” Oro Waram said of the river “We don’t pollute it or cut the trees that surround it Satellite images show the encirclement of the Indigenous Land Igarape Lage has been awaiting the federal government’s approval of the expanded boundaries established by an anthropological study 15 years ago The Wari’ people lived independently until the late 1950s and early 1960s and are the largest group of Chapakuran speakers three out of five Wari’ died from introduced diseases “The Wari’ value their cosmology and rituals And all of it centers around promoting humans thriving in relationships with the non-human and the well-being of your people,” Conklin told the AP “So this law is a 21st century update of these very traditional social ecological values that are at the center of Wari’ culture.” an invasion by land-robbers has blocked the Wari’ people from accessing their essential fishing grounds When the stock market was climbing in January 2024 Donald Trump knew exactly who deserved credit: He did NEW YORK — Martin Scorsese is a producing a documentary made with Pope Francis that will chronicle the late .. Copyright © 2025 Central Pennsylvania Newspapers LLC | https://www.altoonamirror.com | 301 Cayuga Ave. Bnamericas Published: Wednesday, September 20, 2023 Bridge Financing 43,000+ global companies doing business in the region 102,000+ key contacts related to companies and projects news and interviews about your industry in English FROM NOVA MAMORÉ (RONDÔNIA/BRAZIL) – Protected by an armed police scheme provided 24 hours a day by the Rondônia government, 605 heads of cattle grazed until April within the Guajará Mirim State Park a full protection conservation unit in the Amazon (see box) where cattle breeding is prohibited The herd was seized in order to prevent a possible sale several of the detained man’s accomplices are still at large and are prowling the area trying to remove the cattle “We have identified a criminal organization operating in the park that includes owners of farms that are adjacent to the conservation unit,” explains Rondônia prosecutor Pablo Hernandez Viscardi “These properties are used to launder cattle raised illegally inside the park they can’t be sold to meatpackers” deforestation and land grabbing inside the Guajará Mirim State Park goes beyond environmental crimes: investigations carried out by authorities over the last two years sustain that members of the gang would be involved in cases of money laundering Cattle is the element that connects the illegalities Documents included in the case file and other evidence obtained directly by Repórter Brasil show deals made between those accused of the crimes and some of Brazil’s largest meatpacking companies in recent years – such as JBS AN ECOLOGICAL CORRIDOR AND HOME OF UNCONTACTED INDIGENOUS PEOPLES The Guajará-Mirim State Park covers an area of approximately 200 thousand hectares and is a full protection conservation unit. According to Brazilian legislation, this type of environmental protection unit has the strictest rules of use allowing only indirect use of natural resources Sustainable use units may accommodate economic and subsistence activities provided they are managed within a concept of respect for the environment The park is part of an important ecological corridor in Rondônia that connects various conservation units and indigenous lands it borders the Karipuna indigenous territory which in turn is linked to the Jaci-Paraná Extractive Reserve there are the Eru-Eu-Wau-Wau indigenous land “It is not only a rich corridor of biodiversity but also of culture observes indigenous activist Neidinha Suruí But several of these areas have been targeted by invasions Then it gets difficult because there is no more forest there will be no more standing forest” In recent forays to the southern edge of their territory exactly where the indigenous land borders the park leadership found evidence of the existence who participates in expeditions in search of evidence “We believe that these indigenous people are in an extremely reduced group either they were killed or expelled from there [due to invasions].” the thread linking the various parts of the group accused of the crimes began to unravel when the Rondônia Court of Justice decided that the then judge of the Buritis municipality in Rondônia should lose his position because he would have sold judicial decisions in exchange for bribes The case that led to the judicial decision uncovered investigations that pointed to Soares’ participation in a land grabbing and cattle ranching scheme within the Guajará Mirim State Park Among the judicial decisions under suspicion was a decision made by the then judge two years earlier Soares authorized a man named Erivan da Silva Teixeira to remain in possession of almost a thousand hectares of land on a farm called Fazenda Cantão According to the Rondônia Environment Secretariat (Sedam) the area was within the Guajará Mirim State Park Teixeira had already cleared 780 hectares inside the park “This circumstance makes him one of the biggest invaders and degraders of the aforementioned conservation unit” the Rondônia Public Prosecutor’s Office would say a few years later when analyzing the case during the judge’s trial It turns out that, at least since January of that year, the judge would have had a lease agreement with Teixeira for using the Fazenda Cantão And the public prosecutor’s investigations also showed that the then judge issued Animal Transit Guides (GTAs) moving almost 300 head of cattle between Cantão and the Prosperidade farm in Buritis Hedy Carlos Soares was also caught by Sedam employees leaving a barbecue on the Fazenda Cantão According to Judge Marcos Alaor Diniz Grangeia who ordered an investigation into Soares’ conduct there was “an interest on the part of the magistrate himself in granting the request to maintain possession given the business relationship he had with the owner of Fazenda Cantão.” Soares would also decide to return a tractor a trailer and other equipment to the environmental offender in other court cases in which his decisions were questioned nor was he an eventual business partner of Hedy Carlos Soares revealed the existence of a “group of cattle ranchers” in which he would be included and which are suspected of fraud “in theory constituting crimes of false representation criminal association and possible money laundering” This case still has no final decision and is being held in secrecy Among the members of this group are both Erivan da Silva Teixeira and his brother-in-law Walvernags Cotrin Gonçalves – the man arrested in November 2023 for invading the Guajará Mirim State Park and from whom the police confiscated the 605 head of cattle still in the conservation unit In another decision listed as evidence of the judge’s partiality Hedy Carlos Soares released a truck loaded with cattle that had been stopped by inspectors from the State Finance Department (Sefin) in Vilhena on the border between Rondônia and Mato Grosso which is mandatory for this type of transaction Hedy’s justification was that the shipment of cattle was being made between farms owned by the same taxpayer a person called Marcos da Cunha Coelho – a theory later disproved by authorities from the Rondônia State Department of Finance (Sefin) the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the courts The sentence was handed down in November 2020 The GTA that accompanied the truck did not mention Fazenda Cantão but the address provided as the origin of the cattle was the same one that appears linked to this property in other transactions to which Repórter Brasil had access The Rondônia Public Prosecutor’s Office also traced numerous cattle transactions between Marcos da Cunha Coelho and Hedy Carlos Soares on Idaron’s systems and tracked financial transfers between them “The information and evidence produced in the case file show that the judicial decision handed down by Judge Hedy Carlos Soares was aimed at personal interest to the extent that there is strong evidence that the cargo retained by Sefin belonged to him or was of interest to him” concluded the Public Prosecutor’s Office in 2022 The truck carrying the cargo was registered in the name of Walvernags Cotrin Gonçalves – supposedly the owner of the cattle seized in the park in November last year with whom Soares had also made “significant transactions for the purchase and sale of cattle” according to documents in the investigation that a group of cattle ranchers has been using the name of Marcos da Cunha Coelho in the movement of cattle and transportation to the state of São Paulo among them the judge under investigation,” explains the Public Prosecutor’s Office Hedy’s decision had a multiplied effect: according to data from the Rondônia Finance Department after that day the group allegedly made several shipments of cattle to São Paulo using the name of Marcos da Cunha Coelho – the volume of animals grew year on year The transit of at least 1,110 head of cattle has been traced whose total value may have resulted in the evasion of R$ 348.6 thousand in taxes “It is likely that all the cattle sent in the name of Marcos da Cunha Coelho to the Arabiri Farm based on the decision preferred by Hedy Carlos Soares,” the Public Prosecutor’s Office notes in the case file Marcos da Cunha Coelho’s lawyer did not send comments The investigations into the cattle shipments to São Paulo also pointed to the existence of three contracts signed in January 2021 by former judge Hedy Carlos Soares and Marcos da Cunha Coelho with Fazenda Chaparral The property – a feedlot dedicated to fattening cattle near slaughter – is a supplier to major slaughterhouses and received animals both from Soares and Coelho GTAs consulted by Repórter Brasil reveal that in December of that same year Fazenda Chaparral supplied animals to the JBS unit in Lins JBS stated that the property is “currently blocked” by the company and that “all acquisitions were in accordance with the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Monitoring Protocol and the Purchasing Policy” of the slaughterhouse acquired animals from Fazenda Chaparral between 2022 and 2024 The company emphasized that it did not receive cattle from the property in 2021 the year in which the contracts between the investigated people and the farm were signed One of the parts of the confidential investigations to which Repórter Brasil obtained access shows accounting spreadsheets and even bank statements of former judge Hedy Carlos Soares – also accused of money laundering The documents mention JBS both in the context of issuing Animal Transit Guides for animals belonging to Soares and also record deposits that the meatpacker made into accounts linked to the then magistrate several properties and people linked to the cases investigated by the authorities appear to be shipping cattle directly and indirectly to the large Brazilian meatpackers she sent animals to be slaughtered by the JBS slaughterhouse in Vilhena according to GTAs accessed by Repórter Brasil Sinotti admitted not being an actual cattle rancher Identified as a “front” for the former judge in the investigations she said that all GTAs issued and sales made in her name were done by her husband conducted operations on behalf of Hedy Carlos Soares that the profits from the transactions were diverted to the magistrate JBS is explicitly mentioned in an animal movement balance attributed to the gang and attached to the investigation into the former judge The document describes the sale of 13 steers and 5 cows to the slaughterhouse on March 19 13 steers and 5 cows were sent to JBS in a sale registered in the name of Sinotti and Chácara Mãe e Filha according to a GTA independently obtained by Repórter Brasil the balance informs about the sale of 20 cows to the slaughterhouse on March 25 2022 – the same date that GTA records point to JBS as the recipient of a shipment of animals from Chácara Mãe e Filha with the same characteristics The animal balance describing these transactions does not mention Chácara Mãe e Filha officially registered in the name of former judge Soares according to the Public Prosecutor’s Office hundreds of animals for fattening from Fazenda Cantão located within the Guarajá Mirim State Park the man whose cattle were seized in November within the park directly supplied animals to JBS in Vilhena and Pimenta Bueno in 2021 and 2022 and to Marfrig in Ji-Paraná between 2020 and 2021 Sítio Oliveira – Gonçalves’ farm registered as a supplier to slaughterhouses – repeatedly received cattle shipments from properties located on the edge of the Guajará-Mirim State Park and also from Fazenda Prosperidade and Chácara Mãe e Filha JBS stated that both Sítio Oliveira and properties in the name of Andréia Sinotti – Chácara Mãe e Filha and Fazenda Sombra da Mata – are “currently blocked” and that past business transactions followed the slaughterhouse’s responsible purchasing protocols Marfrig also admitted to buying animals from Walvernags Cotrin Gonçalves in 2020 and 2021 but also stated that the property “had no non-compliance with socio-environmental criteria” – and further emphasized that “it ceased its activities in Ji-Paraná (RO) in September 2021” Andréia de Lima Sinotti declined to comment The other mentioned cattle ranchers did not send responses to the questions sent to their lawyers appears as the destination for animals sent by Gonçalves via a farm called Recanto between 2018 and 2019 – located on the edge of the Guajará Mirim State Park This farm is registered in an Incra database but appears as “canceled” due to “partial overlap with duly certified Public Glebes” The location of the property registered in public systems coincides with the location pointed out by the police as the headquarters of Fazenda Cantão The slaughterhouse did not respond to attempts to contact them by the report There are many times when the authorities investigating Hedy Carlos Soares consider in the various cases in which he is involved the possibility that the former judge has participated in money laundering schemes One example is the use of other people’s livestock records to move his own herd “It is evidence of the crime of false representation and brings indications of possible concealment of assets an element that characterizes the crime of money laundering,” notes the Public Prosecutor’s Office in one of the investigation documents Also included in the investigation are bank movements in the accounts of people linked to the so-called criminal group that do not match their personal income: Marcos da Cunha Coelho but moved R$ 77 million between 2019 and 2021 “The body of evidence produced in the case file leaves no doubt as to Marcos da Cunha Coelho’s status as a ‘figurehead’,” concludes the report Soares made “significant” money transactions which “do not appear to match the income declared by the investigated party to the Brazilian Federal Revenue Service” “It is worth noting that the investigation also showed that the investigated Hedy Carlos Soares uses the name of third parties in his business which in addition to demonstrating that his assets are greater than presented indicates possible concealment of assets and money laundering not to mention the investments made in crypto-assets” informs the public prosecutor in the investigation the Public Prosecutor’s Office also uncovered financial transfers between Soares and a couple who brokered the sale of bitcoins – they are being investigated by the police for financial pyramid schemes Authorities found photos from the ongoing investigative procedure in São Paulo saved by Soares in his virtual accounts the former judge would have known about the involvement of the individuals to whom he transferred resources “in fraudulent schemes,” according to a report signed by the Public Prosecutor’s Office The “situation room” of the Rondônia Environmental Police Battalion inside the Guajará Mirim State Park is in a makeshift corner of the cafeteria in the large wooden house with a balcony covered in insect screens that serves as a base for the teams on duty It was in this corner that Lieutenant Colonel Adenilson Silva Chagas pasted a large map on the wall and marked the “targets” of Operation Mapinguari “Walvernags” and “Baiano” (the nickname of Erivan da Silva Teixeira) are two of the points marked on the map in areas where their farms would be The map was prepared to accompany the eviction of the park as if it were a war with territories to be conquered – in this case reconquered by the state after being invaded by land grabbers the commander of the Environmental Police Battalion and also of Operation Mapinguari He recounts events such as trees being deliberately cut down on the dirt roads to prevent the vehicles from passing through (in one case they had to work all night to saw the trunks and open the way again) there was a popular uprising to prevent the seizure of a machine that was helping the invaders to open roads and cut down the forest His arrest was ordered after he had been detained on three previous occasions – all of which were released by the deputy on duty which used part of this very important Conservation Unit as pasture prevented or at least hindered the natural regeneration of approximately 459.11 hectares of forest,” records a court decision denying his release has visible signs of his supposedly activity: a fence previously destroyed by the police that he rebuilt screwing metal plates to join the parts sawed off by the authority which until April were monitored 24 hours a day by the Rondônia shock battalion “That night we heard people calling the cattle to try and take them away and a week ago a drone flew over the area to count how many calves had been born,” explains Sergeant Francinei Mendes who was on duty the afternoon that Repórter Brasil was there Commander Chagas managed to get a court order to remove the cattle from the area He mobilized his staff and drove the herd three kilometers between this area of the park and the invader’s corral where he was supposed to be waiting for a convoy of trucks that would take the animals to a charity that would receive them as a donation The cowboys who drove the cattle had their faces covered to avoid being identified and it was necessary to turn off the surveillance cameras of surrounding properties “because they feared for their physical integrity,” reports the occurrence bulletin of the action according to the document: a previous attempt to remove the animals had been made in 2023 The owner said he had received phone calls threatening to kill him if he took the animals away,” says Chagas Sua contribuição permite que a gente continue revelando o que muita gente faz de tudo para esconder Receba as investigações daagência de jornalismo daRepórter Brasil no seu e-mail. JORNALISMO Diretos Humanos Mundo do Trabalho Povos Tradicionais Questão Agrária Socioambiental Trabalho Escravo English Especiais PESQUISA Impacto Sobre O que fazemos Parcerias Biblioteca English PODCASTS Cova medida Esperança Jornadas Trabalheira VÍDEOS Reportagens Documentários Outros SOBRE NÓSQuem somos Equipe Transparência Prêmios Contato Diretos Humanos Mundo do Trabalho Povos Tradicionais Questão Agrária Socioambiental Trabalho Escravo English Especiais Impacto Sobre O que fazemos Parcerias Biblioteca English EDUCAÇÃO PODCASTS Cova medida Esperança Jornadas Trabalheira Reportagens Documentários Outros Quem somos Equipe Transparência Prêmios Contato Receba as investigações da agência dejornalismo da Repórter Brasil no seu e-mail. Desenvolvido por Studio Cubo e Design por Paula Carvalho Home Impacto Sobre O que fazemos Parcerias Biblioteca English Home Cova medida Esperança Jornadas Trabalheira Home Reportagens Documentários Outros APOIE Receba o conteúdo da Repórter Brasil direto na sua caixa de email Por um futuro em que as pessoas vivam em harmonia com a natureza Photos and graphics © WWF or used with permission. Text available under a Creative Commons licence You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser to improve your experience We encourage you to republish Dialogue Earth articles, online or in print, under the Creative Commons license. Please read our republishing guidelines to get started a joint initiative by Brazil and Bolivia on the Madeira River with fears raised for traditional ways of life and local ecosystems (Illustration: Gabriela Güllich / O Eco) On a hot August day in the city of Guajará-Mirim more than 140 people packed into a training centre for a consultation on a proposed hydroelectric project – one that has rekindled debates on power plants in the Amazon energy security and the plant’s socio-environmental impacts collide Representatives from the electricity sector and the government had come to share the first studies for the so-called Ribeirão dam a binational initiative between Brazil and Bolivia targeted on the Madeira River which divides the two countries just north of the city said she had only received the official invitation to attend on the same day as the meeting and reported that representatives at the event then told them “the study had already been done” “We weren’t needed to approve anything,” she added “What kind of work is this that doesn’t listen to the community?” Local dissatisfaction with the hydroelectric project had been expressed earlier in an open letter addressed to the presidents of both countries and signed by 37 civil society organisations “Summoning communities to publicise studies made without society’s prior knowledge… is to violate the participation of the peoples to be affected and to hide the synergistic and cumulative impacts that will affect them,” they wrote scientists and those who live off the land told reporters of common fears surrounding the project: the loss of ways of life and the collapse of ecosystems the Madeira River is suffering from a range of anthropogenic impacts Jirau and Santo Antônio are run-of-river dams which means they rely on the natural energy of the river to move their turbines “The effect of these dams on the hydrological regime is minimal,” said Javier Tomasella a researcher at Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE) but he explained that the technology is more vulnerable to the climate climatic events on the Madeira River have been “like a pendulum” between intense floods and droughts. “Hydroelectric dams are becoming less and less reliable in the north of the country,” claimed Natalie Unterstell a Brazilian environmental policy organisation She said this is because these facilities “have been or are being built in areas where the flow systems or rainfall patterns have changed.” Brazil and Bolivia signed an agreement to begin preliminary studies on a binational hydroelectric project in the Madeira Basin in an agreement between the then Brazilian state-owned Eletrobras the Bolivian state-owned ENDE and the CAF Latin American Development Bank a member of the Movement of People Affected by Dams (MAB) and Brazil’s National Human Rights Council believes that the studies were carried out “unilaterally” “Guajará-Mirim was once considered the greenest municipality in Brazil Much of it is forest and traditional community land,” he said Ninety per cent of Guajará-Mirim’s area is estimated to be covered by forests mainly concentrated in a mosaic of conservation areas and Indigenous territories the preliminary studies need approval from both the Brazilian and Bolivian sides Then both countries need to sign new agreements for the next stage “We’re very worried,” says Arão Oro Waram Xijeim “The flooding will be greater than predicted in the study and will directly affect the social organisation culture and health of the region’s Indigenous peoples,” he claims This Indigenous land is home to 783 people and extends over 107,000 hectares on the border between the municipalities of Nova Mamoré and Guajará-Mirim “The Mamoré and Madeira are extremely important rivers for our region because we use them to transport our produce and “They’re going to build that Ribeirão power station over there The studies recognise that a projected increase in migration due to the works could “cause changes to existing ways of life” and “increase conflicts associated with land use and the exploitation of natural resources” “Brazil’s Indigenous and traditional populations,” the text continues “are the most sensitive to changes in rivers and natural environments and to the arrival of new people around their territories.” In its response for this report, Eletrobras said that the studies “are based on secondary data and only present an estimate of the probable human groups affected.” (Full response available here.) The company added that there has been “permanent communication with public and private institutions and the general population of both countries” since the start of the studies An information centre in Guajará-Mirim operated from March 2018 to May 2020 and “fortnightly visits to the communities” and “clarification meetings” were promoted Although the studies foresee “marginal flooding” in protected sustainable production areas known as “extractive reserves” local leaders said they had not been approached “We know that there was a company that set up shop and carried out the study for two years but at no point did it sit down with us extractivists to talk about what it thought was going to happen to us,” says Ronaldo Lins a group representing producers in the Pacaás Novos River extractive reserve The reserve is home to around 200 families who make a living from rubber and Brazil nut production Lins used to accompany his father when he was still a child to collect rubber and remembers kindling an early love for the forest The river that gives the reserve its name – a tributary of the Mamoré River that itself flows from the Madeira – is the producers’ main route to the collection sites and the transport of their produce to the city “The Pacaás is the most important river for us to transport our products: rubber in the 204,000-hectare Ouro Preto River reserve president of the Association of Rubber Tappers and Agro-extractivists of the Lower Ouro Preto River also criticised the project: “We have a consultation protocol They know where the traditional population is and how we want to be consulted.” the producers move to the chestnut groves on firmer ground recent flooding has lasted up to two months and shortened the rubber harvest The prolonged flooding also affects their family farming initiatives rubber and açaí trees are unable to survive as Lins described in the case of the Jaci-Paraná extractive reserve following the creation of the Jirau and Santo Antônio hydropower plants “They’ve lost a large part of the rubber plantations because the water invaded and took a long time to dry up,” says Lins “If we’re already having problems when the water recedes here in July The Upper Madeira is a region with little human presence which contributes to a preserved forest and a river with ample aquatic biodiversity “The species that are in the Guaporé and Mamoré rivers are able to fulfil their physiological migration process there are no dams to stop them,” said biologist Carolina Doria coordinator of the Ichthyofauna and Fisheries Laboratory at the Federal University of Rondônia The studies for the proposed dams describe potential impacts on aquatic habitats, changes in the dynamics of sediment transport and a reduction in river connectivity, with the formation of barriers to biological flows. Fishers were not mentioned in the studies, nor in the presentation on the official website for the binational project Gerônima Costa was born in the rubber plantations in the interior of Guajará-Mirim in 1962 to a family that made their living from rubber and fishing She said that an overflow of the Mamoré River in 2014 caused by the operations of the Jirau hydroelectric plant left several neighbourhoods underwater and affected the headquarters of the Z-2 community The fishers were compensated by the company that manages Jirau but Gerônima does not want a repeat of the experience: “Our town has become like an island We have to respect our reserves and Indigenous areas.” Fish farming ponds in Bolivia have also collapsed and fish such as the pirarucu have spread into local rivers preying on a number of species that are important in both the trade and diets of local residents Multiple interviewees for this report complained that the existing hydroelectric dams on the Madeira River produce electricity for the grid while in local municipalities energy is expensive and often from dirty and intermittent sources realised and built in Brazil was made for the national system It was never designed to supply the Amazonian population,” said Natalie Unterstell “This is proof of environmental racism,” she claimed the monthly energy bill is around 1,000 reais (US$200) “The hydroelectric plants are not for us,” says Gerônima Costa the official region comprised of nine Amazonian states there are 211 isolated electricity systems those that are not connected to the national system Around 80% of energy in these systems is estimated to come from diesel-fuelled sources these sites consumed 857,900 cubic metres of diesel oil producing almost 3 million tonnes of carbon emissions according to figures from the Ministry of Mines and Energy obtained by via Brazil’s Access to Information Act Some photovoltaic panels have already arrived at the Ouro Preto River reserve Each consumer pays a monthly fee of 60 reais (US$12) “Those people who live two or three days away from the city now have their own energy Drinking cold water – not many people had that privilege This story was first published by ((o))eco This version has been translated and lightly edited with permission for an international readership Kevin Damasio is a Brazilian journalist and writer focused on social and environmental issues including works published on the Rio Grande Rise ocean ridge and Brazil’s waters Select from our bespoke newsletters for news best suited to you We’ve sent you an email with a confirmation link 我们向您的邮箱发送了一封确认邮件，请点击邮件中的确认链接。如果您未收到该邮件，请查看垃圾邮件。 If you would like more information about the terms of our republication policy or permission to use content, please write to us: [email protected] We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. 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The floods first struck at the beginning of March 2014 Parts of the state of Acre have also been affected Heavy rainfall over the last few days has worsened the situation Of particular concern are the levels of the Madeira River On Tuesday 4 March river levels stood at 18.75 metres Yesterday (Monday 24 march 2014) levels stood at a record high of 19.52 metres River levels are only expected to fall in around 5 days’ time according to Brazil’s Civil Defence (Defesa Civil) Communities all along the river have been hit where 3,262 families have been displaced by the flooding The region has also been struggling with transport disruption after the BR-364 federal highway that connects Rondônia with the Atlantic coast was blocked by flood water and debris Levels of flood water on some parts of the highway are said to stand at 1.4 metres Brazil’s National Department of Transport Infrastructure (Departamento Nacional de Infraestrutura de Transportes) will attempt to set up alternative suppy routes possibly including river ferries over the coming days in efforts to bring essential supplies such as food medicine and fuel to the affected communities Source: Agencia Brasil Brazil Richard Davies is the founder of floodlist.com and reports on flooding news New South Wales Floods Hit Illawarra Bolivia Farms Decimated by Floods Cookies | Privacy | Contacts © Copyright 2025 FloodList The Komi Memem River has been crucial to the livelihood of the Oro Waram people in the Western Amazon for generations land-robbers and pesticide pollution from expanding nearby farms threatens the very survival of the river That’s why the Amazon city of Guajara-Mirim passed a new law designating the river, also known as Laje, “as a living entity and subject to rights,” The Associated Press reported makes the Komi Memem the first river in the Amazon rainforest to be granted legal personhood the endangered river and its tributaries are considered “living entities with rights ranging from maintaining their natural flow to having the forest around them protected,” according to The Associated Press The law also provides for a committee of Indigenous and non-Indigenous members to monitor and give annual reports on the river the Indigenous councilman who proposed the legislation sees it as a new approach to protecting the river from land-robbers who have illegally deforested and farmed the surrounding land “We are further organizing ourselves to fend off invaders,” Oro Waram told The Associated Press The Komi Memem River is not the first river to be granted personhood status the new legislation is part of a growing movement led by Indigenous groups to protect rivers by giving them legal personhood In 2017, New Zealand set a legal precedent when it granted personhood status to the Whanganui River in an $80 million settlement with a Māori nation Bangladesh followed suit by declaring that every river in the country would have the same legal rights as humans, per Reuters In 2021, the Magpie River — also known as Mutuhekau Shipu to the Innu First Nation — in Quebec, Canada, gained legal personhood, giving the river several rights, including the right to sue (through its appointed guardians), National Geographic reported The search has begun for a contractor to work on the design and construction of a bridge linking Brazil and Bolivia The Rio Mamoré International Bridge will connect Guajará-Mirim states that the successful contractor is expected to be announced on 28 December The 1.22km structure will be built on the Mamoré River It will have a cable-stayed central span and access lanes on both sides The project also involves the construction of a border complex and another 3.7km of access lanes on the Brazilian side Similar structures and infrastructure will be built on the Bolivian side Work is expected to take around three years and will create up to 4,300 direct and indirect jobs The project has been approved by the Brazil-Bolivia Binational Commission Brazil's National Department of Transport Infrastructure (DNIT) will be responsible for supervising its preparation and delivery The Brazilian government may adopt modifications presented by Bolivia during the project preparation phase and both parties must participate in the supervision of the work until completion the bridge will strengthen South American integration offering a new route for the transport of cargo and passengers in the region in addition to an export corridor for Brazilian production Brazil minister of transport Renan Filho said: “This is a construction that will facilitate the export of production from the north and central regions of Brazil to Bolivia Chile and the entire world through the Pacific Ocean which only highlights the importance of this bridge.” services and housing Edgar Montaño Rojas added: “Since the Treaty of Petrópolis [diplomatic agreement signed between Brazil and Bolivia in 1903] we have dreamed of greater integration with Brazil We are very grateful to finally be able to move this project forward.” Like what you've read? 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ISRAEL plans law to dissolve campus groups backing armed struggle against the state | Israel news has three shows scheduled at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on January 18 Sabyasachi Mukherjee wants to take his brand global Manmohan Singh had a long list of economic and diplomatic achievements in his decade-long tenure as PM writes Daman about her father Manmohan Singh Montek Singh Ahluwalia was the former deputy chairman The Chinese haven’t attempted any adventures in the east till date Directed by Abhishek Kapoor and starring Aaman Devgan Azaad is a film that manages to keep you hooked till the end AFTER AN INVESTIGATION by the Prosecutor’s Office of Rondônia two invaders of the Guajará-Mirim state park were arrested and obtained rural credit from Banco do Brasil (BB) and Banco da Amazônia (Basa) according to Central Bank data obtained by Greenpeace and accessed by Repórter Brasil One of the beneficiaries was former judge Hedy Carlos Soares he obtained four rural credit grants from Basa for cattle breeding and the acquisition of animals on his Prosperidade farm in the municipality of Buritis the Prosperidade farm had 130 hectares deforested between 2012 and 2021 according to Greenpeace analysis based on satellite data from Prodes a monitoring program by Inpe (National Institute for Space Research) the former judge obtained another rural credit issuance for the same property Soares was arrested by order of the Rondônia Court of Justice for having handed down rulings that favored him One of them legitimized the ownership of the Cantão farm which is part of the Guajará-Mirim park and of which the judge was a tenant The judge moved at least 300 head of cattle between the Cantão and Prosperidade farms according to documents called Animal Transit Guides (GTAs) The documents are mentioned in the Public Prosecutor’s investigations Repórter Brasil had already revealed that individuals identified as fronts for the judge supplied cattle for years to JBS and Marfrig who admitted the relationship with the suppliers and reported that they were blocked located just 400 meters from the Cantão property in Nova Mamoré (Rondônia) received 45,000 USD from Banco do Brasil in January 2020 for the acquisition and maintenance of animals was arrested last November for invading the Guajará-Mirim park According to the Prosecutor’s Office investigations he was part of the same group as the former judge At the time that the property received the credit it had less than 4% of its area with native vegetation Of the 419.05 hectares of the Recanto farm 402 hectares were deforested between 2013 and 2015 according to Prodes/Inpe satellite data analyzed by Greenpeace This is equivalent to 95.9% of the property :: Read more: Land grabbing case in Brazil links meatpackers to corruption and money launder Even if it has been authorized to cut down vegetation the property is irregular because it does not respect the minimum conservation areas on rural properties set out in the Brazilian Forest Code Federal law states that rural properties must maintain a portion of native vegetation called the Legal Reserve the Legal Reserve must correspond to 80% of the property in forest areas The rule also establishes that Permanent Preservation Areas on river banks and hilltops must be maintained Rondônia’s state environmental development secretariat did not answer whether the Prosperidade and Recanto farms had received authorization from the agency to clear vegetation the so-called authorization for vegetation suppression (ASV) The responsibility of financial institutions has been regulated by Central Bank norms since 2008 to restrict rural credit to environmental offenders The accountability of the cattle supply chain in the Amazon for suppliers linked to environmental crimes relies only on the guidelines of the “Boi na Linha” protocol an initiative by Imaflora (Institute for Forest and Agricultural Management and Certification) in partnership with the Federal Prosecutor’s Office Central Bank resolutions were updated in 2023 with stricter rules banning credit to properties with embargoed areas suspended Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) Even so, according to Greenpeace analysis, the current norms are insufficient to prevent credit concessions to deforesters. In the report “Bankrolling Extinction,” published last April wholly or partially within conservation units in the Amazon were benefited by rural credit resources between 2018 and 2022 Also receiving financing were 24 properties overlapping 7 Indigenous lands 21,692 properties overlapping non-designated public forests; 798 properties financed with an Ibama embargo The research was carried out by cross-referencing public databases such as the Central Bank’s Rural Credit Operations System (Sicor) The properties of Hedy Carlos Soares and Walvernags Cotrin Gonçalves are among the cases investigated by Greenpeace. “The banks claim they granted the credits before the Central Bank’s most recent rule How can the banks ignore the legislation?” asks Thais Bannwart Following Greenpeace’s report, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office issued a recommendation in early June for banks to cancel rural credit for properties in conservation areas in the Amazon Greenpeace suggests new credit-granting criteria to close the loopholes identified by the research these could be addressed with measures such as requiring authorization for vegetation suppression (ASV) and cattle traceability which would prevent rural credit from being used to acquire animals linked to deforestation Another suggestion from the NGO shifts the focus of scrutiny: the veto on resources would target the owner with embargoes or fines on any of their properties not just the property registered for the credit operation The changes would close the loopholes that allowed the granting of credits to Hedy Carlos Soares and Walvernags Cotrin Gonçalves The lawyers for both were contacted by Repórter Brasil but did not respond director of the Association for Inclusive Sustainable Solutions and former prosecutor of the Central Bank Banco do Brasil is the largest operator of rural credit in the Legal Amazon, according to Greenpeace. In 2022 alone, the institution granted 44.10% of the value of rural credit contracts in the region. BB ranked 8th among ten major banks evaluated in Rasa (Social and Environmental Performance Ranking of financial institutions) developed by the Association for Inclusive Sustainable Solutions Banco da Amazônia was evaluated by Rasa in the ranking of development banks and funding agencies and ranked 2nd behind only Brazil’s National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) When questioned about the granting of credit to invaders of the Guajará-Mirim park both banks reaffirmed their policies through statements they did not mention the cases presented by Repórter Brasil “The BB does not comment on specific cases out of respect for banking secrecy,” states the Banco do Brasil note adding that the bank “is confident about the compliance of its credit-granting processes.” Banco da Amazônia stated that it is constantly improving its criteria for evaluating socio-environmental and climatic risks these criteria include automatic verification of overlap with indigenous areas and embargoes,” says the bank’s note Desenvolvido por Studio Cubo e Design por Paula Carvalho