Federal prosecutors want to suspend construction of luxury resort in Rio.
The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office in São Pedro da Aldeia obtained a court order to immediately suspend works related to the Resort Pero development, by the company Costa Verde; the Federal Court also ordered INEA (State Institute for the Environment) to conduct a detailed report on the vegetation suppression carried out in the areas of the development, located on Peró beach, in Cabo Frio.
From RJ24Horas - The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) in São Pedro da Aldeia obtained a court order to immediately suspend works related to the Resort Pero development, located on Peró beach in Cabo Frio. The lawsuit filed against the State Environmental Institute (Inea) and the company Costa Verde Participações requested the halting of any and all works resulting from five installation licenses. The Federal Court also ordered Inea to conduct a detailed report on the vegetation suppression carried out in the development areas. According to the lawsuit, Inea illegally excluded conditions from the licenses that required prior authorization from Ibama for the suppression of Atlantic Forest vegetation.
According to federal prosecutor Douglas Santos Araújo, the exclusion of conditions requiring prior approval from IBAMA for the removal of coastal vegetation in a medium stage of recovery occurred without justification, contradicting technical opinions from INEA itself and Federal Decree No. 6.660/2008.
In June 2013, the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) initiated a public civil inquiry to verify the legality of the environmental licensing of the Pero Resort, which houses hotel, residential, commercial, leisure, sports and environmental sectors, located within the Pau Brasil Environmental Protection Area (APA). The ongoing construction works are causing irreparable environmental damage since the removal of restinga vegetation in a medium stage of recovery is occurring without authorization from Ibama (Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources).
According to the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF), the exclusion of the licensing conditions contradicted technical opinions issued by the Institute itself and decree 6.660/2008. The environmental studies for granting the installation licenses considered the various projects of the Pero Resort as a whole, but INEA subsequently improperly fragmented the project in order to circumvent federal legislation.
"The danger in delaying the administration of justice lies in the fact that the construction of the Pero Resort is well underway, with the removal of coastal vegetation in a medium stage of recovery without the approval of Ibama and without environmental studies to be carried out by the federal agency, implying irreparable environmental damage," said Douglas Santos Araújo.