Amazonas State Government Launches Program to Halt Deforestation

Amazonas state in Brazil launches program to combat deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.

Amazonas launches program to combat deforestation in the Amazon rainforest
by Bianca Paiva – Correspondent of Agência Brasil

The Sustainable Municipalities of Amazonas Program, launched today in Manaus, wants to contribute to reducing deforestation and burning in the Amazon forest, promoting reforestation of degraded areas, land regularization, sustainable economy, among other actions. The initiative currently has R $ 59 million in investments. Municipalities that adhere to the project and are successful will receive a sustainability seal.

The program will prioritize the seven municipalities in the southern region of the state, which together concentrate 75% of deforestation registered in the Amazon. “Our challenge is to contain deforestation, not caused by the farmers who have been there for a long time, but there are people entering these municipalities, mainly in Lábrea, deforesting large polygons and leaving there. We always do not get the bust. We want to establish a system of  monitoring with direct participation of the municipalities themselves. Then their preparation and training will be able to help us. This is one of the axes of the program that the program is launching, “said state Secretary of Environment Antônio Stroski.

Five terms of cooperation were signed with several institutions that will contribute to the preservation of the forest, among them WWF Brazil. According to the coordinator of the Amazon Program, of the non-governmental organization (NGO), Ricardo Mello, the partnership reinforces the actions that are already being developed by the NGO in the south of the Amazon.

“For example, the rural environmental register [CAR], is an initiative together with municipalities to implement forest restoration programs, remuneration for environmental services. This initiative for us will be a great benefit, because it is a proactive agenda, consolidated with the state and will enable resources and people to increase our work capillarity in the Amazon, “said the representative of WWF Brazil.

Ministry Involvement

The program will also have the cooperation of the Ministry of Environment. Minister José Sarney Filho participated in the ceremony and announced an investment of R $ 2 million for environmental actions in the state. “My presence here in the state of Amazonas is part of an initiative of the ministry that seeks to cover all the states of the Amazon, to talk with the federated entities, the municipalities and the states, to point out ways and solutions so that we can reduce deforestation in Region, at the same time offering economic alternatives that can make sustainable development possible with poverty reduction and social inclusion, “said the minister.

The partnership with the Ministry will also allow the advancement of discussions on the pavement of part of Highway BR-319, which links Manaus to Porto Velho, and is surrounded by environmental conservation units and indigenous lands. “Now we have created the conditions not only to sustainably develop the immense riches that the Amazon has, but we also created conditions to take the Amazon from isolation. And the BR-319 comes in this bundle of sustainable development, “said Amazon Governor Jose Melo.

The government of Amazonas also presented the State Environmental Economic Matrix that provides for the implementation of a new sustainable economy based on the creation of projects that value natural wealth, such as fish farming, fruit growing, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, among others. “We were in a situation where nothing could be done in the Amazon, but now everything can as long as it is responsible and economically sustainable. We have created a model in which the economic alternatives of our forest can be exploited without degradation, thus generating constant employment and income for our people, “said the governor.