Brazil. Indigenous peoples protest against the dredging of the Amazon rivers

At a Cargill grain terminal in the city of Santarém in northern Brazil, indigenous peoples are protesting a presidential decree authorizing dredging on the Tapajós River, a key export corridor for agricultural products. The protest began on January 22, Reuters reported.

According to local media, the protest is being attended by representatives of 14 indigenous peoples from the Lower Tapajós region and local residents. Inside Climate News notes that the protesters consider Cargill “the greatest enemy of the planet’s most climate-critical rainforest”:

“Environmental and indigenous groups accuse the U.S. grain trading company and other agribusiness giants of supporting projects that they say will destroy the Amazon rivers and rainforests,” the report says.

The presidential decree to include the waterways of the Tapajós, Madeira and Tocantins rivers in the National Privatization Plan (PND) provides for the possibility of privatizing navigation maintenance services, including dredging. Dredging involves removing sediment from the bottom of the riverbed to increase the width and depth of the riverbed. According to indigenous communities, this practice can alter the natural regime of the rivers and poses risks to fishing, territories and the traditional way of life of the local peoples.

The Indigenous Peoples Council (Citatb) stated that the federal government has already launched tender procedures without properly carrying out an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The organization also said that there had been no prior, free and informed consultation with the communities.

Tags: Brazil, protests