Public Prosecutor’s Office wants permanent Ibama brigade to combat fires in the Pantanal

The Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office (MPF) in Mato Grosso do Sul has requested that Ibama create a permanent brigade to combat and prevent fires in the Pantanal. Prosecutor Aline Morais, who works in Corumbá, sent a letter to the institute.

Ibama works to combat forest fires through the National Center for the Prevention and Combat of Forest Fires. The institution has existed for 35 years.

The prosecutor instituted a procedure to monitor inspection and fire prevention measures in Corumbá and Ladário, in the Pantanal region of Mato Grosso do Sul.

The work is being carried out in cooperation with the Federal Police, the National Center for the Prevention and Combat of Forest Fires, part of Ibama, and the Military Fire Department. The prosecutor demanded that priority be given to fighting the fire in areas occupied by traditional and riverside communities.

The MPF is investigating those responsible for starting fires in indigenous, riverside and quilombola communities and in areas of permanent protection and with species threatened with extinction.

The investigation has been supported by reports periodically provided by Ibama and the Military Fire Department. Experts and federal police officers from Brasília, specialized in investigating fires and burnings, are also working on the investigations in the Pantanal.

Minister Marina Silva, of the Environment and Climate Change, stated this Monday (1st) that the fires would have originated from 18 fire outbreaks, the majority on private properties.

She also associated most of the fires in the Corumbá region as a consequence of deforestation. The municipality faces the most critical situation in the biome.

“The culprits will be charged. We already know where the fire spread from. The people have been identified, but the investigation process is ongoing,” said the minister.