Brazil — An illegal grain distribution scheme in Mato Grosso publicly acknowledged by farmers and civil servants may have taken soybeans and corn planted without permits on Indigenous lands in the state — and within areas interdicted by IBAMA Brazil’s environmental agency  — to warehouses of some of the largest global commodity tradings A joint investigation by Repórter Brasil and O Joio e O Trigo reveals commercial relations between seven agribusiness giants (Bunge Viterra and General Mills) and farmers fined by IBAMA for irregularly cultivating crops inside the Pareci Utiariti and Rio Formoso Indigenous lands (ILs) The soybean and corn negotiations took place in 2018 and 2019 a period when there was an interdiction in the areas the grain sales invoices accessed by the report do not identify the farms as being inside the Indigenous lands as the location of the production — this would make business unviable since it is illegal to plant and to purchase production from interdicted lands The documents indicate other agricultural properties as the origin of the grains but all of them are neighboring (in some cases next to) the IL and belong to the same producers fined by IBAMA for carrying out irregular plantations who in May 2018 was fined almost 9 million reais ($1.8 million)  for maintaining agricultural activity on the Pareci Indigenous Land and for preventing the regeneration of native forest on 1,600 hectares (3,950 acres)  of the territory The same area was interdicted by IBAMA weeks later for being sown with transgenic corn — Brazilian legislation prohibits the cultivation of genetically modified organisms on Indigenous lands The geographic coordinates of the IBAMA violation notice apply to a plantation within the IL that borders the Chapada do Sol Farm also registered in the name of Eleonor Ogliari and separated from the Paresí territory only by the road that borders it Cargill and COFCO bought corn and soybeans in 2018 and 2019 The report identified a total of five producers fined by IBAMA in 2018 for producing within Indigenous lands who made sales during the validity of interdictions in the areas to large international grain tradings Such proximity between farms that appear in the invoices as the origin of production and Indigenous lands opens space for the so-called “grain laundering,” when a producer mixes illegal production made in conservation units areas with land seized or interdicted with soybean and corn planted and harvested legally masking the origin of the irregular part of the crop in the case of the Paresí Indigenous people grain laundering was publicly acknowledged by farmers and civil servants working in the region in a series of reports on the Globo Rural TV program In one of the videos, a farmer who was a “partner” of the Indigenous people in the soybean plantations gave an interview: “The work is done by them and I supply equipment and inputs. The result is divided between us, 50-50,” Sérgio Stefanello explained to the reporter He also hinted that grains were declared as being produced on his properties outside the IL “Soybean will be delivered in my name [because] bureaucracy time is not the same as plant time; one cannot wait,” he said Stefanello confirmed that he declared as his own the production made in the traditional territory In another report in the series a dialogue between Carlos Márcio Vieira Barros of the Funai Regional Coordination in Cuiabá and the reporter confirmed the scheme to sell soybean planted without a license The public servant said the maneuver was “not legal.” most companies guarantee to keep a “rigid control” over their suppliers’ social and environmental situation said Edson Fermino Bacchi was no longer a supplier or “a fixed business partner,” “having only occasionally supplied ingredients to the company in the past.” Bunge did not comment on its relationship with the producers mentioned but assured that its monitoring “is able to identify changes in land use and soybean planting on each of the farms” where the company originated and that it calculated whether the volume of soybean delivered was in line with a farm’s production capacity said it used “satellite images and geospatial information” to trace the origin of soybeans ADM and Viterra did not respond to our attempts to contact them Abiove informed that its statement also represented the position of ADM and Viterra Despite the technologies applied by companies and the efforts of sector associations to reduce the risk of triangulation there is still no way to effectively prevent this procedure since the verification techniques consider the soybean origin declared by the producer We also contacted the producers mentioned in this report to obtain their comments The lawyers of Eleonor Ogliari and José Carlos Acco informed us that their clients would not comment on the facts found in this investigation we made numerous attempts to speak with Jacs Tadeu Ventura Rogério Acco and Edson Fermino Bachi through telephone numbers and emails that appear in public records and lawyers linked to them The space remains open for their statements The Paresí Indigenous people have been leasing land to plant grain on a large scale since at least 2004 but they have never managed to license their crops and An agreement with the federal government was signed in 2013 providing for the withdrawal of non-Indigenous farmers from the territory so that the inhabitants of the territory could take over production but the area of cultivation needed to be reduced contrary to what was stipulated in the pact the planted area increased from 16,100-16,600 hectares (about 40,000-41,000 acres) — and the non-Indigenous farmers have not moved away from within the Indigenous lands under the government of former President Michel Temer (MDB) IBAMA fined rural producers and Indigenous associations for deforestation grain production without environmental licensing and planting GMOs The list included names that were signatories of the pact made in 2013 IBAMA’s superintendent in Mato Grosso warned the agency’s management in Brasília that the area could not receive planting but this was ignored by the authorities of the republic the Federal Prosecution Service led the signing of a Conduct Adjustment Term opening the way for the legalization of agricultural production on indigenous lands Rio Formoso and also on Tirecatinga and Irantxe Indigenous lands both in the same region — with a few conditions: that non-Indigenous farmers should withdraw from the area and that there should be environmental licensing by IBAMA — which has not yet happened “We still can’t sell this product legally; there is still a major restriction,” said Arnaldo Zunizakae a leader of the Indigenous soybean farmers interviewed in August 2022 by O Joio e O Trigo Zunizakae said the lack of licensing prevented exports These companies cannot export; if they load on a ship They know that they will be severely punished for buying soybeans from Indigenous lands It is yet another policy designed to prevent Indigenous people from developing agriculture on their lands Ronaldo Zokezomaiake is one of the leaders of the Haliti-Pareci people and former president of the Copihanama cooperative created in 2018 and responsible for planting soybeans within the territories said that even international sales were happening — despite the lack of licensing from IBAMA we are still using some companies to make this [commercial] link we deliver to the companies that finance us and then they follow up we can do this commercialization directly ourselves,” he explained the reporters asked IBAMA about the supervision in the area after the interdiction including monitoring the destination of production but the environmental authority said there was nothing in its database UPDATE (5/29/2023): The story was updated to add the information that its manifestation also represented the position of ADM and Viterra Banner image: A tractor works in the Utiariti Indigenous Territory Indigenous lands are for the exclusive use of native peoples and cannot be farmed on an industrial scale Image courtesy of Fellipe Abreu/O Joio e O Trigo FEEDBACK: Use this form to send a message to the author 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 […] The venture was energized with cargo this month The deadline for the concession contract was March 2024 The substation has two 230/138kV processing units with installed power of 200 MVA each in addition to a new patio in the Rio das Éguas substation 105 kilometers of transmission line in 230kV and double circuit connecting the assets The signing of the concession contract took place in March 2020 with the initial delivery of the work in 4 years but the completion took place in 34 months The anticipation of the delivery reinforces Neoenergia's commitment to the work developed in its area of operation and to investors The Rio Formoso project is very important for the company because it expands its supply capacity in the interior of Bahia," says Fabiano Uchoas More than 1000 km² (386.1 m²) of forest destroyed in the last month Deforestation alerts released today by the monthly DETER-B data series of the national space research institute (Inpe) registered the highest rate of deforestation for the month of April in recorded history despite the data missing the numbers for April 30.[1] At least 1,013 km² (391.1m²) of rainforest was cleared a 74.6% increase compared to the same period last year which covered 580 km² (223.9 m²) The scale of deforestation for April covers 3000 to 5000 hectares of cleared rainforest “The continued deforestation highs are a direct result of President Bolsonaro’s sabotage of environmental law enforcement in Brazil,” says André Freitas Forest Campaign Director for Greenpeace Brazil “The individuals perpetuating illegal deforestation have impunity as only 2% of [the] deforestation alerts have been investigated by authorities in recent years.” The stakes for the unraveling crisis in the Brazilian Amazon are high considering the recent Global Forest Watch report which found that over 40% of the world’s total tropical forest loss for 2021 occurred in Brazil’s Amazon.[2] “Unfortunately the agribusiness lobby is trying to reward illegal deforestation as it advances laws that would reward land grabbing and dismantle environmental licensing requirements,” Freitas continued [1] DETER-B data for the last day of the month of April will be reported by INPE in the coming week. http://terrabrasilis.dpi.inpe.br/app/dashboard/alerts/legal/amazon/aggregated/ [2] 2021 Tree cover loss data reported by the Global Forest Watch and World Resources Institute, April 2022 https://research.wri.org/gfr/latest-analysis-deforestation-trends Greenpeace International Press Desk: [email protected], +31 (0) 20 718 2470 (available 24 hours) An area larger than Belgium was deforested in the Amazon in the past three years, according to PRODES 2022 has seen record-breaking numbers of fires and deforestation MANAUS, BRAZIL (October… Indigenous leaders from Brazil and civil society groups alert world leaders about deforestation and escalating violence at the hands of the current government | The Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of… “Time is of the essence for the Amazon and its people.” São Paulo, Brazil–According to new data from Brazilian Space Agency’s Program DETER (INPE), the month of August recorded 1,661… Persistent heavy rain since Friday 26 May caused flooding in the states of Pernambuco and Alagoas States of emergency were declared in both states over the weekend Officials say that at least 7 people have died During a visit to both affected states on 28 May President Michel Temer discussed the emergency response and promised federal support the Pernambuco state government said that two people had died in the flooding and more than 35,000 were displaced Around 2,300 evacuees were being housed in public buildings and official temporary shelters Over 33,000 had evacuated and are staying with friends or relatives Governor Paulo Câmara declared a state of emergency in 14 cities or municipalities: Belém de Maria Officials say that the levels of the Mundaú Dam stood at 40% just a few days ago Agência Pernambucana de Águas e Clima (APAC) said that some areas have recorded almost 250 mm of rain in a 24 hour period with some of the heaviest rain falling between 27 and 28 May 26 cities in Alagoas have been affected by the heavy rain All the victims died in mudslides in the districts of Jaqueira Three people are still missing after a landslide in Grotas do Santo Amaro One person was swept away by the overflowing Mundaú river in Satuba Evacuations have been carried out in Maceió It is thought that more than 4,000 families have been displaced A state of emergency has been declared in the affected areas San Miguel and Jacuípe rivers have all overflowed Rainfall totals over the last 7 days were 25% of normal annual averages and thought to be higher than the rainfall totals of the 2010 floods Major flooding devastated parts of the two states of Pernambuco and Alagoas in June 2010 At least 51 people died and 120,000 were forced to evacuate In a report just after the event, International Rivers said: “The center of the tragedy has been the Mundaú and Paraíba river basins in the states of Alagoas and Pernambuco an estimated 80% of residential housing was destroyed The report goes on to say that the flooding of 2010 was directly linked to a series of dam bursts along the two rivers and their tributaries “The dam bursts reflect a lack of adequate safeguards in the construction and maintenance of both public and private dams the latter typically for large sugarcane plantations it is estimated that there are at least 100,000 small and medium dams most of which were built with little or no regard for environmental impacts and dam safety.” The floods were also linked to the “clearing of riparian woodlands and native vegetation on steep slopes resulting in losses of water retention capacity soil erosion and sedimentation of river channels.” Flooding was also worsened by the lack of adequate urban planning in towns and cities along floodplains that are occupied by rivers during periods of unusually intense rainfall Richard Davies is the founder of floodlist.com and reports on flooding news Cookies | Privacy | Contacts © Copyright 2025 FloodList Brazil’s Bananal Island lies where the biodiversity hotspots of the Amazon and Cerrado meet yet traditional Indigenous food sources are disappearing Brazil’s Javaé people make an offering of manioc flour to Auranã the divine being who keeps the secret of manhood The flour is placed ready for the divinity’s visit in a straw-covered hut the tribe grows manioc alongside fruit and other crops used watermelons for the offering – and even these were not grown by the tribe Vagner had to leave the village of Boto Velho and drive to the nearby town of Lagoa da Confusão Fish and manioc flour are traditionally the staples of the village’s diet. However, due to the extreme drought affecting the region’s rivers water has become scarce and the fish have vanished Rather than fishing or producing their food Vagner’s community at Boto Velho is compelled to buy it such as the Krahô-Takaywrá and Krahô-Kanela to the east now find themselves reliant on supermarkets rather than the land to fulfil their needs Droughts, floods, soil erosion and the silting of the Javaé and Formoso rivers and their tributaries have led to food insecurity for these tribes. The rivers have been adversely affected by decades of damming and irrigation projects initiated in 1979 by the Brazilian military regime which sought to convert the region into an intensive agriculture hub such projects continue to be developed despite evidence of their human and environmental impacts The Krahô were expelled from their ancestral lands in Lago da Praia in the 1970s by ranchers backed by the Brazilian military dictatorship and the local government Houses in the Takaywrá village of the Krahô people the inhabitants cannot build permanent structures Their shacks are covered with large white tarpaulins made out of seed sacks donated or sold recounts surviving as a farmhand on various farms across the region when he engaged in the Indigenous struggle for land he and his people have tried to reclaim their territories by occupying the land which they call Mata Alagada (flooded forest) but have been compelled to leave at least three times mourns the days when hunting and fishing provided food which he says is now unfeasible on the eight-hectare land (about 20 acres) where he now resides “Now the situation is different because we lack territory,” he says “And those who possess territory often suffer crop losses José Valdete Xorxo Ribeiro da Costa Krâho chief of the Takaywrá villageThe development of new dams and canals to divert rivers for industrial agriculture crops being lost and the displacement of residents In addition to living on a small plot of land that officially is not theirs, the Krahô-Takaywrá are forced to relocate annually during the flooding season due to changes caused by damming and irrigation projects. “They are caught in a loop of the Formoso River. When the river swells, the groundwater also rises,” says Filogônio Luiz, a member of the Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI) Representatives of the Krahô-Takaywrá and Krahô-Kanela in Tocantins, NGOs and grassroots movements spent three years investigating the Indigenous situation in the region. In the report Permanent People’s Court in Defence of the Cerrado Territories they state: “Changes in river dynamics have rendered traditional farming plots unviable the primary protein source for local communities Levi Pêphã Brito Ribeiro Krahô on top of a dam built on the Urubu RiverLevi Pêphã Brito Ribeiro Krahô says the dam on the Urubu River acts as an insurmountable barrier to upriver fish migration “Fish such as pirarucu and turtles once frequented here Luiz notes that Takaywrá has experienced more severe flooding in recent years He attributes this to the Javaé River being affected by the silting of its source due to agribusiness activity in neighbouring states Free newsletterGet a different world view with a roundup of the best news Industrial agriculture surrounding Bananal Island relies on irrigation canals disrupting the rivers’ natural water cycle Water extraction using powerful pumps and canals is another cause of water scarcity in the Javaé riverbed “The canals change the course of the rivers they lose the natural protection they had developed over time.” The Formoso with a large amount of sand in the riverbedThese landscape changes have caused the soil to become extremely moist or excessively dry the Indigenous communities have been unable to maintain their traditional farming practices Soil fertility, which relies on natural river flooding, has also deteriorated due to droughts on Bananal Island. “The soil lacks the chemical and physical properties that once ensured the subsistence and food security of Indigenous peoples,” Luiz says. Read moreThe canals are part of large-scale irrigation developments inaugurated with the Rio Formoso project during the dictatorship. This project followed the model of the Xingu Indigenous park which forced contact between white settlers and Indigenous populations living in voluntary isolation the next step was to proceed with “territorial cleansing” – as officials and farmers referred to deforestation denies the allegations made by the Indigenous people “Several technical studies have shown that the dams can supply canals without causing any impact on the volume and flow of rivers.” the change in river flows does not have an impact on food security and fish migration is not affected by the dams since they only operate in June Milhomem also argues that removing the dams could lead to a loss of “jobs and human dignity” for the Indigenous population “The dams have actually improved their quality of life,” he says Prosecutors from the Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office informed that they “obtained a favourable court decision ordering the federal government to create a reserve” for the Krahô-Takaywrá in the area along with the installation of a water tank and a temporary treatment system to tackle the problem of drinking water shortages a CIMI coordinator who monitors the region closely observes that human actions are altering the cycles of nature and affecting the environment and the Indigenous communities God no longer decides whether there’s water or not,” Pereira says This report was funded by Princeton University and the Rainforest Journalism Fund in partnership with the Pulitzer Center Who Knew?Mammals have been dethroned as world’s only true masticators but mammals were once thought to be the only ones to chew at least as it’s usually defined: moving our toothy jaws up and side to side to tear through tough food But chew on this: the ocellate river stingray a beautiful spotted fish from the Amazon River “And then I heard about these Amazon stingrays—the only one of the sharks or rays to feed on insects Insect are covered in shells of chitin—a tough substance that can withstand a lot of stress before it cracks or breaks The best way to destroy chitin isn’t to crush it “And that’s what chewing does,” says Kolmann He filmed the stingrays with high-speed cameras as they tackled three kinds of prey—soft-bodied fish The videos reveal that the rays usually pinch the shrimp and insect morsels on one side of the mouth They then move the right and left halves of their jaws away from each other and then back together They also move the upper and lower halves independently these movements create shearing forces that gradually ratchet their prey apart It certainly seems so: They’re flexing and moving their jaws from side to side to pull their prey apart This suggests that mammals and stingrays have independently evolved very similar solutions to the problem of breaking into tough mouthfuls Kolmann argues that we’ve been thinking about chewing too narrowly Some biologists have billed it as one of the key innovations that allowed mammals to flourish But it’s almost narcissistic to define chewing in the light of how mammals do it; many other groups of animals do something similar Birds and many other reptiles use a muscular stomach-like organ called the gizzard to grind their prey and some even swallow stones that help with the dismemberment Most fish use a second set of jaws in their throats—the pharyngeal jaws—to crush and grind their prey These styles of feeding seem weird to us because they disconnect the act of catching food from the act of destroying it it captures the prey and eats it with the same set of jaws,” says Kolmann But a bird might swallow a worm with its beak while pulverising it with its gizzard A wrasse might snag food with one set of jaws and crush it with another By sitting close to the bottom of the sea or a river and suddenly lifting the edges of their disc-shaped bodies they create a suction that draws prey towards their mouths “Processes that can be considered as types of chewing form this wide messy gradient that extends across the vertebrate tree of life,” says Kolmann. Neoenergia signed an agreement on Tuesday (25) with GIC for the sale of a 50% equity interest in eight transmission assets that are in operation Narandiba and Rio Formoso – total 1,865 kilometers of transmission lines The purchase price is estimated at about R$ 1.2 billion A transmission holding company will be set up to incorporate the operating assets The GIC will also have the right to first offer in relation to the potential future sale of a 50% stake in the transmission assets under construction by Neoenergia – Itabapoana Alto do Parnaíba and Paraíso – which cover 6,089 kilometers of lines the valuation for 100% of the company's assets would be approximately R$ 2.4 billion It is worth mentioning that Neoenergia will no longer consolidate the debt of the operating assets considered within the scope of the operation Neoenergia will continue to provide operation and maintenance services as well as other corporate services to the operating assets Neoenergia and GIC signed a development contract for joint participation in the upcoming transmission auctions in Brazil it is a great pride to partner with an internationally recognized partner such as GIC This transaction confirms Neoenergia's operational excellence and recognizes the company's good capital allocation in recent years It also reinforces our commitment to the strategy of recycling assets and optimizing results for our shareholders," said Eduardo Capelastegui " GIC is pleased to invest in the growing Brazilian power transmission market an essential part of the country's decarbonization and electrification efforts We look forward to working alongside Neoenergia's strong management team and leveraging their deep local knowledge and capabilities to develop the platform's considerable long-term growth opportunities," said Ang Eng Seng Director of Infrastructure Investments at GIC The transaction is still subject to customary conditions precedent including prior approval from government authorities and certain third parties and is expected to close in the second half of this year.  The eight assets in operation have Permitted Annual Remuneration (RAP) of approximately R$ 430 million and an average concession term of 25 years GIC will have certain rights in relation to the potential sale of eight other assets under construction and Potiguar Sul The total RAP of these assets is equivalent to approximately R$ 1.3 billion