MPF appeals to halt Pedral do Lourenção works on Tocantins River

The Federal Public Ministry (MPF) has filed two appeals with the Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region (TRF1) to halt the licensing process and explosive works at Pedral do Lourenção on the Tocantins River in Pará.

The first appeal seeks to address the broader impacts on the Araguaia-Tocantins Waterway, covering over 3,000 kilometers across five states: Pará, Tocantins, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, and Goiás. The MPF argues against the fragmentation of environmental licensing and demands a single, integrated impact study for the entire river basin.

The second appeal focuses on the local section of the waterway, requesting the immediate suspension of installation and preliminary licenses to prevent the National Department of Transport Infrastructure (Dnit) from using explosives in the riverbed. The MPF contends that previous judicial decisions allowed works to proceed before mandatory socio-environmental studies were completed and before traditional communities were properly consulted according to their own established protocols.