Pro-BR-319 Brazilian team fined $14,286 for deforestation in the Amazon

By Letícia Misna – From Cenarium

MANAUS (AM) – Manaus Futebol Clube, a team that wears the slogan “BR-319, no road, no game!” on its jersey, was fined $14,286 by the Amazonas Environmental Protection Institute (Ipaam) after the agency received a complaint and confirmed environmental violations at the team’s training center, located in Ramal do Janauari, Iranduba, 27 kilometers from the capital, Manaus.

According to Ipaam, the soccer club illegally deforested 2.51 hectares of forest to build the Ninho do Gavião training center without the necessary authorization. Additionally, an irregular tubular well was installed without the required license. The notifications were sent on Monday, the 10th.

The agency reported that, in addition to on-site visits by teams from Ipaam’s Industrial Licensing Management (Geli), remote sensing image analyses were conducted using geoprocessing to confirm the extent of the environmental crime, utilizing the Institute’s digital platform (https://gis.ipaam.am.gov.br/geoportal/).

Three fines

Ipaam President Gustavo Picanço explained that three fines were issued: one for illegal deforestation, another for constructing the training center without the proper environmental license, and a third for the unauthorized drilling of a tubular well. In addition to the fines, Ipaam ordered the area to be embargoed.

Ipaam inspector Hermógenes Rabelo, an environmental analyst from Geli, explained that although the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) lists the area under third-party ownership, geographical images and on-site inspections confirmed that the space belongs to the soccer training center. “This makes the center responsible for the environmental violations,” Rabelo emphasized.

To CENARIUM, the team’s press office stated that, for now, it will not make a public statement, as it has not yet received Ipaam’s notification.

Fines

The first fine, amounting to $3,442, was imposed for drilling wells to extract groundwater and operating them without the proper authorization from the competent environmental agency, in accordance with Article 72, Section II of Federal Law No. 9.605/98 and Article 3, Section II of Federal Decree No. 6.514/08.

The second fine, of $2,152, was applied for the illegal deforestation of 2.51 hectares of native forest, also without the necessary authorization from Ipaam, in compliance with the same legal provisions. The third infraction concerns the construction of the training center without the appropriate environmental license. In this case, Ipaam fined the facility $8,692 for being a project considered potentially harmful to the environment, violating the relevant regulations and laws.

The violator has 20 days to pay the fines or file a defense, as established by Federal Decree No. 6.514/2008. Ipaam also ordered the embargo of the area, halting any activity until the identified irregularities are resolved.

Manaus FC and BR-319

In 2024, the team publicly supported the revitalization of BR-319, the highway connecting Amazonas to Rondônia. The road’s condition is a constantly debated issue in the region, as its existence threatens the survival of the Amazon and the traditional peoples inhabiting the area.

Now, instead of a sponsor’s logo, the club’s uniform features the phrase “BR-319, no road, no game!”

(*) With information from Ipaam
Translated from Portuguese by Gustô Alves