‘We came from a strengthening process of the violators’, says Ibama’s superintendent in Amazonas

Mencius Melo – From Cenarium Magazine

MANAUS – “We came from a process of strengthening the offenders”, said the new superintendent of the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Resources (Ibama) in the Amazon, Joel Araújo, during an interview with journalists Paula Litaiff and Thiago Gonçalves in the program Good Night Amazon, of radio and TV Onda Digital, on Tuesday, 23. In addition to criticizing the dismantling of IBAMA, Joel addressed the distance between institutions vital to the region, such as the Superintendence of the Manaus Free Trade Zone (Suframa) and IBAMA. The manager also commented on the episode of the Filó capybara and the destructuring of the organ in Amazonas.

Araújo spoke for almost 40 minutes and, during the interview, the one chosen by the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva, to head Ibama in the largest and most preserved state of the Legal Amazon, addressed issues that are on the political agenda in Amazonas, in Brazil, and on the planet. “The environment agenda is very important to the Amazon, to Brazil, and to the world, because the whole world depends on our forest”, observed the manager.

Asked by the anchors of the program about what the first actions he intends to implement ahead of IBAMA, in Amazonas, Joel said: “We have the approval to play the reform of the IBAMA building in Manaus, and to work to reopen the agencies in the interior that were closed in the previous government. Such important and strategic agencies as those in Boca do Acre, Parintins, among others. Another guideline is the pirarucu management policy as a fast economic alternative for innumerous communities”, he listed.

Home grown

Besides projecting immediate actions, Joel Araújo made a positive balance of the beginning of the new government. “We suffered a lot as Ibama’s employees, but the new government appointed a house employee and we will fight for more employees to be appointed”, he declared. Facing institutional relations, the superintendent made pertinent observations. “I think that when it comes to Amazonas and the Amazon I believe that the superintendent of Ibama can give an opinion about the Manaus Free Trade Zone”, he highlighted.

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For the manager, this is necessary because they are agencies that act in the same direction: that is the preservation of the Amazon rainforest. “The MFTz has a role that is being denied to the riverside dwellers, the traditional populations, the people of the region where it operates”, he argued. When asked about how to combat crimes in the region, he said: “We need more employees and more structure, but I want to thank the State Environmental Battalion, Funai, Ipaam, and the environmental secretaries of all the cities in the interior. This helps us a lot”, he thanked.

Contrary narratives

In one of the moments of the interview, journalist Paula Litaiff touched on the theme ‘Ibama versus public opinion. The agency suffered criticism during the case of the “Filó capybara”, which gained national repercussion. Joel Araújo replied: “Today, a lot happens on the internet and many environmental violations have migrated to the web, and if you are going to post something about wild fauna it is important to know if you are not committing an environmental crime beforehand”, he advised.

As for the fact that the capybara has in the “breeder” Agenor Tupinambá its biggest exhibitor on the internet, he commented: “When you influence other people you have to be careful”, he warned. As for the criticism to the Wild Animal Sorting Center (Cetas), where Filó was kept and which was criticized for its apparent lack of structure, Joel Araújo explained: “The Cetas came from a process of depredation and now we are in the bidding phase and, of course, we will fight to improve it”, he concluded.

Origin and performance

Joel Araújo, born in Parintins, has a degree in Geography from the Amazonas State University (UEA), a specialist in Environmental Management from Faculdade da Serra, and is studying for a master’s degree in Protected Areas Management at Inpa. In 2007, he became an Ibama employee, where he has worked for 15 years. He was chief of inspection in the interior of the state and in the capital. He is coordinator of operations in the sector of combating environmental crimes and processes, working on the agenda of environmental management and management of natural resources in the Amazon in combating deforestation.

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