The Minister of Institutional Relations, Alexandre Padilha, said that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) will veto the text of Provisional Measure (MP) 1150, “inheritance” from the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL) that would allow an increase in shares of deforestation in the Atlantic Forest.
The text, approved last Wednesday (24th) by the Chamber, contains amendments (known in political jargon as “jabutis”) which, according to entities such as Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica, pave the way for the dismantling of the Atlantic Forest Law, approved in 2006 to guarantee the preservation of the biome, which is the most deforested in the country. Environmental protection entities pressed.
“We wanted this week, which is Atlantic Forest week, to be celebrating the future, but we are working to avoid even more losses, and that we can maintain the Atlantic Forest Law”, lamented the director of the Foundation , Luís Fernando Guedes Pinto.
But this Thursday (25), in an interview with GloboNews, Padilha guaranteed that the Government will veto the text. More than that, there is a commitment assumed with the Senate so that there is no overthrow of the veto, according to the minister.
“The government will always use the instruments it has to protect the environment, to guarantee sustainability. There is already a commitment from the Senate that President Lula, when vetoed, does not override the veto in the Senate. And the Chamber of Deputies itself, when was voted on for the first time, the government leadership has already signaled that it had no commitment to sanctions and that we would veto it,” he said.
Dissonance between Senate and House
The tortoises had been removed from the text by the Senate, but were reintroduced by the deputies in the vote last Wednesday, which ended with 364 votes in favor and 66 against. The vote took place on the same day that new data pointed to high rates of deforestation in the last year of Jair Bolsonaro’s government.
The proposal, presented by ruralist federal deputy Sérgio Souza (MDB-PR), former president of the Agricultural Parliamentary Front (FPA), allows deforestation in primary and secondary vegetation in an advanced state of regeneration. In addition, it reduces the scope of permanent preservation devices in urban areas. This flexibility can encourage the occupation of risk areas, such as hills and slopes.
On Wednesday, entities and people in defense of the environment began campaigns on social networks asking the president to veto the text. The campaign was also expanded with actions on the streets of cities across the country.
On the streets of São Paulo. Save the Atlantic Forest #VetaLula pic.twitter.com/n4svRznU8B
— MaLu Ribei🔥🔥 (@Gotinhas) May 25, 2023
The text approved by Congress extends for the sixth time the deadline for landowners to comply with the requirements of the Forest Code. This includes formalizing a commitment to restore or compensate for native vegetation cleared beyond the limits permitted by law.
“This means, in practice, that the Forest Code does not start its implementation and we do not start restoring Brazilian biomes and ecosystems. This is already very bad by nature, and this MP needs to be rejected”, pointed out Guedes Pinto.
Editing: Rodrigo Durão Coelho
