Belo Monte Construction Allowed to Resume

Rendering of the proposed Belo Monte dam via
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com

The $13 billion Belo Monte mega dam is under construction again in the heart of the Amazon as the Brazilian Supreme Court has provisionally overturned a Regional Federal Tribunal’s ruling that construction should be stopped. According to the Supreme Court's website, the ruling of Judge President Britto may be reviewed once the court conducts a “more detailed analysis of the merit of the case.” 

The government supported the decision, stating it prevents “major and irreparable damage to the economy, to public property and to the country’s energy policy.” Amazon Watch’s Executive Director, Atossa Soltani, stated "this unfortunate decision doesn’t invalidate the Tribunal’s judgment that the project is unconstitutional.” The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office is expected to appeal the decision and demand a review by a full bench of the Supreme Court. 

Read this earlier blog post for more context. Learn more about Amazon Watch's opposition to the dam's construction here. Read more from Indian Country Today, the BBC, the Washington Post, and Reuters.

Major Court Victory over Belo Monte Dam

Photo credit: Cristina Mittermeier/
International League of Conservation Photographers

In a major victory for indigenous peoples’ rights, Brazil’s Regional Federal Tribunal has held that construction must be suspended immediately on the massive Belo Monte dam until indigenous communities have been consulted. The Tribunal’s judgment cited UN International Labour Organisation’s Convention Number 169 and the Brazilian Constitution in the ruling. The dam, if constructed, will displace 16,000 people by government estimates but may displace thousands more. The decision will be appealed. 

Judge Souza Prudente, who authored the ruling, said "A study on the environmental impact of the project was required before, not after, work on the dam started. The legislation is flawed…The Brazilian Congress must take into account the decisions taken by the indigenous communities. Legislators can only give the go-ahead if the indigenous communities agree with the project." 

Read more about the ruling through the BBC here, National Geographic here, and the Guardian here. For more information in Portuguese, read here.