Bahia’s Public Prosecutor’s Office Suspends Construction of Voltalia Energy’s Wind Power Complex to Preserve the Only Habitat of the Lear’s Macaw in the Country

MPBA Recommends to Inema and Voltalia Energy the Suspension of the Wind Farm in Canudos, Bahia. The Fact Occurred Because the Work is Located in the Only Habitat of the Lear’s Macaw, Threatened with Extinction

Last Monday (19), the Public Ministry of the State of Bahia (MPBA) recommended to the company Voltalia Energy of Brazil and to the Institute of the Environment and Water Resources of Bahia (Inema) the suspension of the installation of the wind farm in the municipality of Canudos. The suspension is due to the fact that the complex is situated in the only habitat of the Lear’s Macaw (Anodorhynchus leari) in Brazil.

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Lear’s Macaw at Risk of Extinction

The species is considered endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The last census, conducted in 2019, estimates that there are only 1,500 birds.

In early June, in addition to specialists’ fears that the 80 wind turbines could pose collision risks to the Lear’s Macaws, there is another problem. Voltalia Energy has not submitted any complete environmental licensing to obtain permission for the works in Bahia.

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A resolution from the National Environmental Council (Conama) establishes that an Environmental Impact Study and Environmental Impact Report (EIA/Rima) and public hearings are mandatory for wind energy plants located in areas where endangered species occur, as is the case with the Lear’s Macaw. Despite Voltalia Energy presenting only a simplified license, Inema approved the project in Bahia.

MP of Bahia States

According to MPBA, the installation of the wind energy project could cause irreversible impacts on local fauna and traditional communities. In the case of Inema, the MP recommended that it suspend or even revoke the current environmental license of Voltalia Energy’s wind farm.

Furthermore, even after the presentation of the EIA/Rima, it recommended that a hearing be held with broad participation from the population and affected communities. In the area where the wind farm would be installed in Bahia, there are eleven communities, with about 600 families, who according to an investigation by the MP of Bahia, were not consulted about the installation of the project in a location they use to develop social, productive, and cultural activities.

The complaint about the investment came from the Biodiversitas Foundation, which expresses great satisfaction that MPBA has engaged in the process and demanded that Inema comply with the legal requirements of state environmental licensing. The foundation states that Inema made a serious mistake in granting the license to Voltalia Energy without requiring the EIA/Rima concerning the impact on the Lear’s Macaws.

Wind Energy Project Causes Outrage

About a month ago, a young environmental activist, 18 years old, outraged by the project’s installation, created an online petition on Change.org calling for the suspension of the work.

Náthaly Marcon works as a veterinary assistant and is passionate about the Lear’s Macaw species. Thus, she decided to take the initiative to draw attention to the case.

Currently, the petition created by Náthaly already has more than 60,000 signatures. If you also feel that the project should be suspended and would like to support it, Click here, sign the petition, and share this article so that more people understand the case.