Minas Gerais launches Rio Doce basin recovery program

The State Environmental System and Water Resources (Sisema) presented a comprehensive report to the Minas Gerais Legislative Assembly on June 19, outlining achievements from May 2025 to April 2026. Highlights included solid‑waste management for 617 municipalities covering 15.4 million residents, the Bolsa Reciclagem program disbursing over R$3.6 million to 91 collector associations and recycling more than 12 000 t of material, planting over 13 000 native seedlings, and extensive animal‑protection actions such as 71 000 sterilizations, 7 851 wildlife rehabilitations and 5 444 re‑introductions. The agency also recorded more than 45 000 environmental inspections, the processing of 9 000 new environmental‑fine conversions, and the use of digital tools like the Gaia platform for complaint management.

In parallel, the Minas Gerais government announced the Rio Doce Mais Vida project under the New Rio Doce Repair Agreement. With an estimated investment of roughly R$1 billion, the program targets 200 municipalities in the river basin and aims to restore 12 000 ha over the next 20 years—9 000 ha on private lands and 3 000 ha within state conservation units. The plan blends land‑regularisation, forest restoration, soil‑ and water‑conservation measures, and a payment‑for‑ecosystem‑services scheme. Two forest‑seedling schools will be set up in Governador Valadares and Ubá, and mobile technical assistance booths will support landowners in complying with environmental standards. The initiative follows the 2015 Fundão dam disaster and seeks to translate repair funds into lasting ecological benefits.