One of the criticisms made of Dilma Rousseff’s government is regarding her lack of attention to environmental issues in Brazil, an example of which is the fact that she was the president who created the fewest environmental reserves since the country’s return to democracy. If the criticism is true, the candidate for reelection has taken action, albeit late, and although it may seem like an electoral initiative.
Today’s Official Gazette of the Union published decrees by the president creating three marine reserves on the coast of Pará, covering an area of more than 110 thousand hectares on the northeast coast of the state, where other reserves already exist, such as Mãe Grande, in Curuçá. In recent times, economic interests have been expressed in this region, including for mineral exploration and construction of ports.
The Araí-Peroba marine extractive reserve, created in 2005, in the municipality of Augusto Corrêa. Its area has been expanded by another 50 thousand hectares. The three new conservation units, totaling 60 thousand hectares, are:
– Cuinarana Marine Extractive Reserve, located in the municipality of Magalhães Barata, with approximately 11 thousand hectares of area.
– Mestre Lucindo Marine Extractive Reserve, in the municipality of Marapanim, with 27 thousand hectares.
– Mocapajuba Marine Extractive Reserve, located in the municipality of São Caetano de Odivelas, with 21 thousand hectares.
All of these reserves aim to “guarantee the conservation of the biodiversity of the ecosystems of mangroves, sandbanks, dunes, floodplains, flooded fields, rivers, estuaries and islands; and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources and protect the livelihoods and culture of the traditional extractive communities in the region”.
The three new reserves have a buffer zone, which will be defined by means of a specific act by the president of the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation. As the subsoil has also been federalized, mining activities authorized by the National Department of Mineral Production (DNPM) and licensed by the competent environmental agency will be permitted within the buffer zone, respecting the provisions of the management plan of the unit involved, when applicable.
