Brazil’s congress has passed sweeping legislation that could dismantle decades of environmental safeguards, fast-track deforestation, and weaken Indigenous land rights.
Tiago Rogero reports for The Guardian.
In short:
- Brazil’s lower house approved a bill that allows most polluting projects — such as mining and large-scale agriculture — to bypass traditional environmental reviews by self-declaring their impact online.
- The law sharply limits the role of Indigenous and quilombola rights agencies by excluding lands not officially titled, though many have been awaiting legal recognition for years.
- Environmental groups and legal experts argue the law is unconstitutional and plan to challenge it in Brazil’s supreme court, especially if President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s expected veto is overridden by the conservative congress.
Key quote:
“We’re seeing the implosion of Brazil’s environmental licensing system, that is going to become full self-licensing, where a company just clicks a button and the permit gets printed.”
— Suely Araújo, public policy coordinator, Climate Observatory, and former president of Brazil's environmental protection agency
Why this matters:
Environmental licensing laws are Brazil’s frontline defense against deforestation, industrial pollution, and displacement of Indigenous communities. Rolling back these safeguards opens vast areas of the Amazon and other ecologically sensitive regions to mining, agribusiness, and infrastructure projects with little oversight. The Amazon plays a vital role in regulating global climate and rainfall patterns; its degradation could accelerate warming and destabilize ecosystems worldwide. The legislation also sidelines Indigenous groups whose lands are often targeted for exploitation, undermining human rights and biodiversity protection. As Brazil prepares to host the UN’s COP30 climate summit in the Amazon this November, the country's actions now send a conflicting message about its environmental commitments.
