Oil Exploration in the Amazon River Delta Concerns Environmentalists

The Search for Oil in the Mouth of the Amazon Has Raised Concerns for Environmentalists and Civil Society Organizations.

Recently, a document signed by 80 organizations was sent to representatives of the Lula government to warn about the possible consequences of oil and natural gas exploration in the region. The main focus of the concerns is the potential environmental impacts and the increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

The Mouth of the Amazon region is located in the Equatorial Margin, an area that is rich in oil, according to Petrobras. The state-owned company has planned an investment of US$ 2 billion to explore the region, which is located in deep and ultra-deep waters on the border between the coast of Amapá and Rio Grande do Norte.

Environmental Impacts

For the civil society organizations that signed the document, the exploration of oil in the Mouth of the Amazon could cause serious impacts on the local biodiversity. The Amazon coast is an important region for biodiversity conservation, and oil and natural gas extraction could affect the environmental balance of the area.

Thus, the exploration license should not be issued before a multidisciplinary analysis, with regional scope, to verify the possible impacts of extracting the “new pre-salt.” According to the organizations, exploration in the region could divert investments intended for renewable energy sources, which would be inconsistent with the commitments made by the Brazilian government to the Brazilian population and the global community.

Positions

The President of Petrobras, Jean Paul Prates, advocates for fossil fuel extraction in the region. The company plans to drill a well more than 160 km from the nearest point on the coast and more than 500 km from the Mouth of the Amazon River. He considers this exploration strategic for the company, but many question whether the search for oil should take precedence over environmental preservation.

The Minister of the Environment, Marina Silva (Rede), warned Jean Paul Prates that she would oppose the proposal to search for oil in the mouth of the Amazon River. She views oil exploration in the region as a threat to the local biodiversity and the environment in general.

Organizations That Signed the Document

Among the organizations that signed the letter sent to the federal government are ClimaInfo, Greenpeace Brazil, the Indigenous Research and Training Institute (Iepé), the Climate Observatory, the Oil and Gas Observatory (OPG), Oceana, and WWF-Brazil, among other entities. These organizations seek to raise awareness among the population about the environmental impacts that may occur if the search for oil in the region is authorized.