An important step was taken last Tuesday, May 16, in the Federal Senate against the serious setbacks that have been threatening effective compliance with the Atlantic Forest Law (Law No. 11,428/2006) in Brazil. This is because, the text of the bill for the conversion of Provisional Measure 1150 was voted, withdrawing all amendments included illegally and dedicated to attacking provisions of this law and the Forestry Code (Law No. 12.651/2012).

Large civil society organizations, through pressure on the Environmentalist Front of Congress, contributed to this victory, which is a victory for those who recognize the importance of the only law in the country that protects a biome, precisely the Atlantic Forest, our most threatened biome in all the history of occupation of the country. To all the tireless defenders of the Atlantic Forest, we thank you immensely and we will continue together!

CELEBRATE, because the removal of the so-called “tortoises” from the MP1150 was extremely important. They made it impossible, for example, to protect urban Permanent Preservation Areas (APPs), as well as creating loopholes that would open more doors to the deforestation of this biome. The amendments would allow, for example, deforestation in primary and secondary vegetation in an advanced stage of regeneration, in addition to passing on to the municipalities, much more subject to a lack of resources and technical staff, the responsibility for releasing the suppression of vegetation in a medium stage regeneration in an urban area.

Despite the celebration, we also continue in ALERT! First, because the matter goes back to the Chamber of Deputies and may again be the target of “strange” amendments by those who attack the protection of this biome and, consequently, attack our lives to assert vested interests. Second, because what was left in the text is still a cause for concern, since it affects precisely the deadline for rural properties in the country to regularize themselves from an environmental point of view. It is only through an effective Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the Regularization Program (PRA) that we will achieve the Brazilian goal of restoring the Atlantic Forest biome.

The PRA is a policy established by the Brazilian Forestry Code (Law nº 12.651/2012) that aims at the regularization of rural properties that have environmental liabilities, that is, deforested or degraded areas. In the context of the Atlantic Forest, a biome that has suffered intense degradation and loss of its forest cover over the years, the PRA plays a strategic role in the restoration and recovery of these areas. Through the program, rural landowners can join actions to recompose native vegetation, such as the implementation of ecological restoration projects on their properties.

We understand that postponing the deadline for joining the PRA is detrimental to the population. The PRA program provides, for example, incentives and instruments to support rural landowners, such as facilitating access to specific lines of credit for implementing restoration actions. It is only through supporting those who intend to restore their properties that we will be able to meet, for example, the national goal of restoring 12 million hectares of the biome by 2030, established by the commitment assumed by Brazil within the scope of the Bonn Challenge (“Bonn Challenge”) ) and the 20×20 Initiative, signed in Mexico in 2016.

This goal is not random, it represents a means of reducing the impacts of climate change on the lives of human beings, animal and plant species that live in our territory.

For all these reasons, we will continue to support this fight, so that setbacks are always stopped and we can continue in our mission of conserving and restoring the Atlantic Forest in our region.

By Camila Conti – Public Policy Analyst at Associação Ambientalista Copaíba