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Five farmers are being investigated by the Federal Police (PF) for the fires that destroyed 25,000 hectares of the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, in the region of Serra do Amolar, in Corumbá. One of them was arrested on the spot, at his home, for irregular possession of a firearm and ammunition, while he was carrying out a search and seizure order in the Maitáá operation, which began on Monday (14).
According to the delegate responsible for the investigation, Alan Givigi, each of the rural producers owns a farm where the fire started that destroyed part of the Pantanal environmental preservation area, on the border with Mato Grosso. “There are 5 farms, each with a different owner,” he said.
Police suspect that rural producers set native vegetation on fire to turn it into pasture for livestock. “The native forest is extracted, and there is pasture for cattle,” says the deputy.
According to the PF, those suspected of setting the region on fire may be responsible for crimes of damage to the permanent preservation forest, direct and indirect damage to conservation units, fire and contamination (Art. 54, of Law No. 9.605 / 98), whose combined penalties may exceed 15 years in prison.
Fire destroys the Serra do Amolar, in Corumbá. – Photo: Playback / TV Morena
The operation is the result of investigations that began in June this year, according to Alan Givigi, with analysis of satellite images. Ten search and seizure warrants were executed, six in Corumbá farms, two in the city and two in Campo Grande.
According to the delegate, documents and cell phones were seized in cities, as well as weapons at the home of a target. Forensic analyzes were conducted on rural properties and employees were heard. No one was arrested for the fires.
The operation was called Matáá, which means fire in the Guató language, it is in reference to the Guatós Indians of the Pantanal who live near the affected areas.
Fogo has already destroyed an extensive area of native vegetation in the Serra do Amolar region, in Mato Grosso do Sul – Photo: IHP / DIvulgação
To help fight the fires in the South Pantanal and also in the Nascentes do Taquari State Park, 32 firefighters from Paraná arrived in the state. Two will go to the work front this Wednesday (15). The reinforcement already integrates the actions of the emergency situation.
The Nascentes do Taquari State Park is on the border with Mato Grosso and Goiás, in Costa Rica and Alcinópolis. It is the beginning of the Pantanal in Mato Grosso do Sul and it also has closed points. The fire started there on the first weekend of September and, according to the Laboratory of Environmental Satellite Applications of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, from which Ibama extracts data, 15,000 hectares have already been burned in the region, equivalent to 49 % of preservation area.
“The situation in our state is very critical”, summed up the general coordinator of Civil Defense in Mato Grosso do Sul, Fábio Catarinelli.
