The French group would rank in the first place of the donors of the mining companies who prospect on these territories yet prohibited, according to the terms of the Brazilian Constitution.
by
Again, the role played by financial institutions, particularly by Crédit Agricole, in the destruction of the Amazon is highlighted in a report by the NGO Amazon Watch and the association of indigenous peoples of the Brazil (APIB), made public Tuesday 22 February. The fourth edition of the study “Complicity in destruction” is interested in the links between finance and mining companies that prepare exploration projects in the indigenous territories, yet prohibited by the Brazilian Constitution. A restriction that could be lifted this year by the Congress, before the October presidential election.
In February 2020, minister ministers and justice presented a bill opening the Indian territories to the exploitation of their natural resources, particularly ores, hydrocarbons and water resources necessary for the production of ‘electricity. Two months later, Ricardo Rooms, then Minister of the Environment, had taken advantage that the media attention was centered on the Pandemic of Covid-19 to accelerate the congress discussions.
The video of this Council of Ministers of 22 April, disclosed by the Supreme Court, confirmed how environmental protection was seen as an obstacle by the government. At this meeting, the minister welcomed the progress made by companies to prepare for these normative changes.
A boom of mining requests
It is precisely what this new report reveals: while the legislation has not yet evolved, in November 2021, there were 2,478 requests for mining on 261 Indian territories, filed with the National Agency Mines (ANM) by 570 mining companies. In total, these requests represent 10.1 million hectares, the equivalent of the area of Iceland, mainly in the Amazon where the mining deposits are concentrated. “Some requests are old, but there has been a boom from Jair Bolsonaro’s victory, both multinationals like orppling cooperatives. As long as they are in the ANM system, these requests remain Valid, even if they are illegal. And because legislation can evolve, they represent a very serious threat to all these territories, “says Rosana Miranda, who coordinated this study for Amazon Watch.
The report focused on seven mining giants who filed applications for holdings in indigenous territories: Brazilians Vale and Potassio do Brasil, the British Anglo American, South African Anglobold Ashanti, Australian Rio Tinto, Canadian Belo Sun, Anglo-Swiss Glencore and Peruvian Minsur. Together, they have benefited in loans and inputs from $ 54.2 billion (47.7 billion euros) since 2016 for their operations in Brazil over the last five years.
You have 56.74% of this article to be read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.