Survey of the Amazon Institute of Human and Environment (Imazon), which analyzed more than 3,500 actions of the Federal Prosecutor (MPF), showed that they increased liability for illegal deforestation of the Amazon. However, only 5% of the actions filed between 2017 and 2020 resulted in paid compensation. In addition, there is no guarantee that the fines set forth are applied to the biome itself.
Punishing illegal deforesters in the region and recovering the damage that was caused is one of the main challenges of justice in the environmental area, says Imazon.
For the researcher of Imazon Brenda Brito, the increase of cases deemed that they lead to the liability of deforesters represents a good result. “[É positivo] That the courts have maintained a favorable understanding of conviction in these actions that use evidence obtained remotely, with satellite images and database use. The challenge now is to obtain the effective payment of indemnities and the recovery of the areas that were deforested. ”
The survey accompanied the result of Public Civil Actions (ACPS) filed by the Federal Public Prosecution Service (MPF) from 2017 to 2020, in the first three phases of the Amazon Protect Program. The actions call for liability for illegal deforestation of the biome in the civil sphere, in which it is possible to charge compensation for material and moral damages and determine the recovery of the forest.
Numbers
3,551 actions were analyzed, involving 265 thousand hectares deforested and claims of more than R $ 4.6 billion in compensation. Until December 2023, 2,028 shares (57% of the total) had a sentence, with 695 with some kind of liability. 640 lawsuits were upheld, considering decisions after the judgment of appeals, when judges or courts accepted at least one of the MPF’s requests for liability.
The remaining 55 actions led to Conduct Adjustment Terms (TACs), when those responsible for illegal deforestation pledged to adopt repair measures. The survey showed that, added, convictions and TACs correspond to 34% of actions with sentences.
Imazon says that although convictions are not the majority between decisions, the data represents an increase in liability. In a previous study, of the 3,551 cases analyzed, only 650 (18%) had sentences until October 2020 and 51 were proceeding – either by the MPF’s request for the court, or through TAC. With this, the responsibilities corresponded to 8% of the sentences.
Still, most sentences (66%) did not result in liability. Until December 2023, there were 860 (42% of cases) extinct, when the court understands that there is no evidence for an action; 268 (13%), dismissed, when all MPF requests were denied; 137 (7%), declined for state courts; and 68 (3%), annulled, invalidated decisions awaiting new sentences.
Imazon points out that the predominance of extinctions was mainly until 2020 and because of the actions with uncertain defendants, legal innovation of the Amazon protects, when the MPF moves processes for illegal deforestation, but unable to identify the defendant. The goal is for the court to embargo the area and prevent any economic use of it, which could combat grabbing.
In October 2020, however, the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) adopted a favorable understanding of the continuity of actions by uncertain defendant, which has led to the increase of such cases after judgment of appeals, Institute said.
Compensation
Imazon has concluded that compliance with liability is still very low. According to the survey, of the 640 judgments coming after judgment of appeals and the 55 tacs signed, which determined compensation of R $ 251.9 million, only 37 (5%) had compensation, totaling R $ 652.3 thousand.
During the survey, the institute identified that another 11 TACs were paying in installments the sanctions corresponding to R $ 560,7 thousand. In addition, in eight cases, the judge ordered the blockade of amounts due in bank accounts of the defendants, totaling R $ 78.1 thousand. With this, the amounts already paid and in payment correspond to 0.5% of the total of R $ 251.9 million due.
According to Imazon, the research also identified the lack of guarantee of the application of compensation in the biome itself. Even if the MPF requested the allocation of values to the environmental agencies in most shares, the survey indicates that public funds were the majority destination of sentences, such as diffuse and national environmental rights funds.
“CNJ resolutions and recommendations [Conselho Nacional de Justiça] Already allow to direct these values to activities in the Amazon, which would be ideal. For example, with transfers to non -profit public or private institutions that carry out native vegetation recovery projects or to combat burning. For this, the courts and the MPF need to publish call notices for project registration and analysis, ”says researcher Brenda.
Recommendations
Imazon concluded that judges in the first instance still reject evidence obtained by remote means – satellite images or public database information – and that there is a varied definition of compensation values in sentences.
For both problems, the study recommends that CNJ intensify the spread of its protocols, which already provide for the use of such evidence and a methodology for quantifying climatic damage resulting from deforestation and forest fires, as well as training in the counties.
According to Imazon, sentences need to improve the way of determining the restoration of deforested areas and the supervision of this obligation. For the supervision of recovery, the suggestion of the research is that the CNJ organizes and makes available georeferenced data in the areas, to allow its monitoring by remote sensing by different organizations.
“In the case of actions with uncertain defendants, the research guidance is that the MPF, instead of entering several cases, groups several areas deforested in one request for land and environmental agencies to promote their embargo,” added Imazon .
