After two days of travel through the Amazon, the Rainbow Warrior arrived today in Santarem. Just a few days ago, we called on you to join Brazilians, as they demand a Zero Deforestation law to Save the Amazon. Today, we are in Santarem to meet with more people from the Amazon to discuss the impacts of deforestation and the need for a Zero Deforestation Law.
Santarem is in the heart of the Amazon, important campaigns to protect the forest have been fought and won in this port city over the last few years.
In 2006, the Soya Moratorium – a commitment from Soya traders in the Amazon not to source from newly deforested areas – was established. The announcement followed 6 years of intense campaigning against forest destruction for soya expansion. The moratorium still stands today and is one of the important measures helping to protect the Amazon.
Now we are back, together with local partners from the GTA (a network of 450 civil society organizations in the Amazon) to denounce the reckless destruction of the Amazon by irresponsible infrastructure projects and to call for a Zero Deforestation Law in Brazil.
Six years ago, the federal government held a long participatory project, including 17 ministries, to develop a plan to mitigate the impacts of the paving of a road called BR-163 that cuts through the Amazon for 1700km. The plan made many promises about how any negative impacts of paving the road would be minimised. Unfortunately, the paving went ahead but the action plan never came to fruition. With only 373km of the road left to pave, this project is expected to conclude in 2013.
Today in Santarem, many community members signed the petition for a Zero Deforestation Law in Brazil. Add your voice to the call for a Zero Deforestation Law, Save the Amazon!