Record of deforestation in the Amazon is ‘terrible’ and ‘horrible’, says Mourão

The Vice President of the Republic, Hamilton Mourão (Republicans), classified as “terrible” and “horrible” the data that show that Brazil recorded a record of deforestation in the Legal Amazon in April.

Mourão is president of the National Council for the Legal Amazon and said this Monday (9) that it is necessary to identify “where there are flaws” in the government’s work.

The vice president cited the Executive’s lack of money to invest in the preservation of the Amazon. “Our problem to improve inspection is that we manage to implement the system of fixed bases that is foreseen in the plan there in the Guardians of the Biome, but then it depends on resources”, he said.

Data from Inpe (National Institute for Space Research) were released on Friday (6th) and showed that deforestation alerts in the Amazon in April reached 1,012.5 km² of forest.

This was the first time that one of the first four months of the year had deforestation that exceeded 1,000 square kilometers. There may still be an increase in the data, considering that Inpe released the rate registered until the 29th of last month.

The data represents a significant jump of 74% in relation to deforestation alerts registered in April last year, around 580.5 km², a number that was also the record for the month.

Mourão mentioned the possibility that people are taking advantage of the fact that 2022 is an election year to break the rules of the area.

“We are in an electoral process. So, let’s say, well, there is less surveillance in their thesis. There are many people operating illegally”, he said.

Mourão said he didn’t expect such a bad number because “there was a time when the satellite wasn’t seeing something and the data wasn’t showing up.”

“The highest rates this April were in the State of Amazonas, in that southern region of Amazonas, a somewhat complicated region there, along the BR-230, there [próximo de] Humaitá and Apuí. So, you have to see what’s going on, where are we going wrong,” he said.

Also this Monday, President Jair Bolsonaro published a video on social media to counter criticism that the government does not work to preserve the environment. The recording is narrated in English and says that Brazil is “a free and extremely preserved country”.