Signed in February 2019, the concession contract for the private sector of the Itatiaia National Park, on the border between the states of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais, has been breached after the company that won the event entered into judicial reorganization.
The conservation unit was the third to be granted to the private sector after approval of the federal law that made the legislation for the concession of services in protected areas more flexible, in 2018.
The contract signed between ICMBio (Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Preservation) and Hope Human Resources, winner of the tender, provided for a series of improvements during the first two years of the concession, but almost nothing was done.
The signing of the agreement, which provides for investments of R$ 17 million over 25 years, was marked by a ceremony with the presence of the then Minister of Environment, Ricardo Salles, in the national park, accompanied by the president of ICMBio, Adalberto Eberhard.
About two years after winning the tender, according to ICMBio, the company alleged financial difficulties as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, which led to the park’s closure.
Among the obligations provided for in the contract were the renovation of the entrance to the park, the viewpoint of Last Farewell and the bridge over Lake Azul. Currently, the company is negotiating the contractual collection of around R$ 3 million in fines.
In 2020, in the first year of the pandemic, the Itatiaia National Park had 48,200 visitors, almost three times less than in 2019, when 127,400 people visited the site. Management estimates that the park will receive 140,000 to 150,000 visitors in 2022.
The only benefits implemented by the company, according to ICMBio, were the updating of the official website, which now houses an online ticket sales system, and the partial installation of the signage project.
At the time of the bidding process, the choice of the company was the target of criticism, as it did not have experience in park management. Hope Human Resources was investigated during the 17th phase of the Lava Jato operation, after being cited in a plea awarded as a beneficiary of a scheme to direct Petrobras’ bids.
The report tried to contact those responsible for Hope Human Resources, but had no return.
A leaf found that the company Parquetur is the main interested in taking over the administration of the national park and has already sent representatives to visit the facilities. The report also sought out the company, but there was no response.
According to the director of the park, Luiz Gonzaga Barbosa Aragão, there is a risk that the concession contract will be repeated if the concessionaire is not acquired by another company interested in the business.
“If that happens, we will have to wait another two years for another contract to be signed and the improvements actually started,” he says.
Among the improvements most awaited by visitors and residents of the surrounding area is the paving of the Garganta do Registro road, which gives access to the upper part of the park. The approximately 20 kilometers take almost an hour to be covered by car due to the poor state of conservation of the asphalt.
The concession contract also foresees, in the long term, the installation of attractions such as zip lines and the construction of a shopping center at the entrance to the park.
The only work in progress within the park is carried out by the state-owned Furnas, which has an environmental compensation contract for maintaining a data transmission antenna on top of a hill inside the park.
To compensate for the environmental impact of the equipment, the state-owned company is obliged to make improvements at the site, such as the construction of a new shelter for visitors, whose works are still at an early stage.​
.
