Court in Belo Horizonte Overturns Injunction on Mining Project by Tamisa Company in Serra do Curral, Halting Miner’s Operations

The Injunction That Benefitted Mineradora Tamisa in Its Mining Project in Serra do Curral Was Overturned by the Court of Belo Horizonte, Which Stated That the Enterprise Causes a Series of Impacts on the Protection of the Area as a Heritage of the State of Minas Gerais.

On last Friday (07/15), the Attorney General’s Office of the Municipality of Belo Horizonte overturned the injunction of Judge Rogério Santos Araújo Abreu, from the 5th Court of Public Finance and Autarchies, which benefited Mineradora Tamisa in the Serra do Curral region. Now, the company will again be prevented by the courts from continuing its mining project in the location, which must be preserved as a heritage of the Minas Gerais region.

Tamisa’s Mining Project in Serra do Curral Is Stopped After Overturning the Injunction That Benefitted the Company in Exploiting the Region’s Resources

The overturning of the injunction that benefitted Tamisa’s mining project, carried out by the Attorney General’s Office of the Municipality of Belo Horizonte, reinstated the effects of the ordinance from the State Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage of Minas Gerais (Iepha), which provided for the provisional protection of the Serra do Curral in the areas bordering the Capital with Nova Lima and Sabará. Thus, the Tamisa mining company will not be able to continue its exploration in the area. 

The overturning of the injunction was granted by Judge José Arthur de Carvalho Pereira Filho, President of the Court of Justice of Minas Gerais, who confirmed the risks posed by the resource to the Serra do Curral region.

This resource strongly benefitted the mining enterprise Complexo Minerário Serra do Taquaril (CMST), located in Serra do Curral, and now, the Municipality of Belo Horizonte argues that this injunction posed a serious threat to the public authority. This is because the injunction prevented the consolidation of cultural heritage in Serra do Curral and allowed the entry of mining ventures into the region, such as Tamisa’s project.

Thus, Judge José Arthur de Carvalho Pereira Filho argued in his decision to overturn the injunction that “from the perspective of severe harm, it is clear that allowing such exploration represents a seriously harmful potential to public order, hindering the enforcement of cultural heritage protection, in addition to being in direct conflict with constitutional norms,” further confirming the municipality’s position that the action could “cause a serious threat to public order, hindering the enforcement of cultural heritage protection, in addition to being in direct conflict with constitutional norms.”

Overturning the Injunction Resumes the Protection of Serra do Curral and Again Prevents Projects Like Tamisa’s from Occurring in the Region

Following the decision to overturn the injunction that benefitted Tamisa’s mining project in the region, the Serra do Curral is once again protected by the ordinance of the State Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage of Minas Gerais (Iepha). Thus, the government of the state of Minas Gerais seeks to prevent ongoing damage to the environment and to the cultural heritage of the region until further notice.

Now, Iepha will continue with its protection plan but is subject to changes if there is any position from the State Council for Cultural Heritage (Conep) regarding the overturning of the injunction.

The entire process of listing Tamisa’s mining project in the Serra do Curral region has been ongoing for some time, as at the beginning of July, the Attorney General’s Office of the Municipality filed a Public Civil Action against the environmental licensing granted by the State of Minas Gerais to the mining company.

Therefore, Tamisa awaits new positions from Iepha, Conep, and the Justice of the State of Minas Gerais to continue its mining project or to maintain the suspension of the enterprise indefinitely.