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Federal Public Ministry Action in Pará Challenges Petrobras License in Foz do Amazonas Granted by Ibama on October 20, Points Out Failures in EIA-Rima, Absence of Compensation Plan for Fishermen and Risk to Municipalities Impacted by Drilling Logistics in Deep Waters on the Shipping Route
The Federal Public Ministry (MPF) in Pará filed, on last Thursday (4), a civil action in Federal Court requesting the immediate suspension of the Petrobras license in Foz do Amazonas for drilling oil wells in deep waters in block 59, about 175 km from the Amapá coast, authorized by Ibama on October 20. According to the Prosecutor’s Office, the licensing violated the rights of fishing communities by advancing to the exploratory phase without guaranteeing minimum reparation mechanisms for workers affected by the activity.
According to Folha de S. Paulo, in the action, the MPF argues that the decision of the environmental agency disregarded the impacts on thousands of families of fishermen and extractivists, mainly in Pará, whose territories are crossed by the support logistics for the enterprise. The document points out that the environmental study itself acknowledges direct impacts on artisanal fishing, but that the license was granted without requiring a specific compensation plan for this production chain in the exploratory phase.
Action Questions Scope and Conditions of the License in Foz do Amazonas
According to the MPF, the Petrobras license in Foz do Amazonas was issued based on environmental studies considered incomplete to measure the real extent of socioeconomic impacts.
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The technical analysis that supports the action points out structural flaws in the Environmental Impact Study and the Environmental Impact Report (EIA-Rima) submitted by the oil company for block 59 of the basin.
For the Prosecutor’s Office, there was a “paradoxical conduct” of the licensing process, where negative direct impacts, of regional scope and of “great importance” on fishing are recognized, without the imposition of proportional mitigation and compensation measures.
The core of the challenge is that the process regulated the risk but did not guarantee concrete reparation to the affected parties, which motivated the request for immediate suspension of the license until the identified gaps are corrected.
Failures in EIA-Rima and Absence of Compensation Plan for Fishing
The EIA-Rima from Petrobras admits that drilling the well and the transit of support vessels cause disturbances to artisanal fishing activity, including the possibility of damaging nets, buoys, and other fishing gear in the navigation routes.
Despite this, licensing progressed without a specific compensation plan for the fishermen directly affected, according to the MPF.
The agency states that Ibama based its criteria on a 2014 Reference Term, which conditions the need for a compensation plan to the overlap of fishing with the 500-meter exclusion zone around the well.
In the Prosecutor’s Office’s assessment, this parameter is insufficient because the main impact falls on the routes of support vessels between the port of Belém and the drilling area, near Oiapoque, and not just in the area immediately restricted around the well.
Maritime Routes, National Park, and Artisanal Fishing Territories
The logistics of the Petrobras license in Foz do Amazonas involves a navigation corridor connecting Belém, in Pará, to the offshore operating area, near Oiapoque, in Amapá, close to the Cabo Orange National Park.
The MPF emphasizes that these routes cross artisanal fishing territories of continuous use, with small vessels depending on traditional areas to ensure income and food.
Expert reports and monitoring data cited in the action indicate that these areas are used throughout the year, and not on an “occasional” basis, as claimed by the company to justify the exclusion of certain municipalities from the area of influence.
For the MPF, there is a disconnect between the diagnosis of impacts and the effective measures for socio-environmental protection, leaving families vulnerable to potential harm.
Excluded Municipalities and Dispute Over Influence Area
The Prosecutor’s Office criticizes the exclusion of the Pará municipalities of Bragança and Augusto Corrêa from the direct area of influence of the enterprise, despite maps from the environmental study itself showing overlap between artisanal fishing zones and the routes of support vessels.
Petrobras classified parts of these regions as areas of “occasional use,” which the MPF contests.
Based on technical reports and monitoring data, the agency argues that these areas are used year-round by fishing communities, which would justify their formal inclusion in the project’s area of influence.
The definition of this area is central to determine who will have the right to mitigation and compensation measures, including specific support programs, monitoring, and potential material damage reparation.
Drilling Waste and Impact on Local Infrastructure
The action also requests the immediate inclusion of the municipalities of Primavera and Capanema, in Pará, in the area of influence of the Petrobras license in Foz do Amazonas.
The Waste Management Plan foresees companies based in these cities as the final destination for drilling fluids and cuttings resulting from operations, which, according to the MPF, generates a direct impact on local urban and environmental infrastructure.
By pointing out these waste routes, the Public Ministry argues that there is a clear link between offshore activity and municipal services on land, such as industrial waste management, transportation, and storage.
Without the formal recognition of these municipalities within the licensing scope, any costs and risks associated with the operation may fall on structures that were not designed for this, including oversight and environmental control systems.
Ibama and Petrobras Defend Regularity of the Process
Ibama reported that it has not yet been formally notified of the legal action and that it will only respond in the records after receiving the formal notification from Federal Court.
So far, the agency has not commented on the merits of the criticisms regarding the EIA-Rima, the 500-meter exclusion zone criterion, or the definition of the area of influence.
Petrobras, in turn, stated that it complied with applicable legislation and met all requests from the regulatory agency in the licensing process for block 59.
The company maintains that the Petrobras license in Foz do Amazonas was granted within the established technical and legal parameters and has not yet commented on specific requests for the inclusion of new municipalities or the formulation of a compensation plan exclusive for artisanal fishermen.
In light of the allegations of “unacceptable disconnect” between recognized impacts and reparation measures, the judicial outcome of this action is likely to influence not only the future of oil exploration in the Foz do Amazonas basin but also the protection standard for artisanal fishing in other maritime frontier projects in the country.
The decision to maintain, revise, or suspend the license could redefine the balance between the expansion of the oil frontier and the protection of coastal communities in the North region.
In your opinion, should the Petrobras license in Foz do Amazonas remain valid as is, be revised with new conditions, or be suspended until a robust compensation plan for fishermen is implemented?
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