A drone view shows the Santa Izabel village on the Uaca indigenous land, near the mouth of the Amazon in OiapoqueChildren of the Karipuna indigenous people play at the Uaha village on the Jumina indigenous land, region near the mouth of the Amazon in OiapoqueAtiele Santos, of the Karipuna indigenous people, prepares flour at the Ahuma village, near the mouth of the Amazon in OiapoqueOIAPOQUE, Brazil - State-run energy firm Petrobras has hit growing resistance from Indigenous groups and...
He has said he expects to start drilling in the second half of this year or sooner in the most promising part of the Equatorial Margin, named the Foz do Amazonas basin, for the mouth of the Amazon River several hundred kilometers away. Foz de Amazonas shares geology with the coast of nearby Guyana, where Exxon is developing huge fields.
Brazilian prosecutors have a mandate to protect Indigenous peoples, often taking their side in disputes with firms or federal and state governments. In September 2022 they recommended that Ibama not issue the license before a formal consultation of the local communities. Records from the prosecutors’ preliminary investigation, seen by Reuters, show that in December 2023, CCPIO asked them to broker a 13-month formal consultation with Petrobras about Indigenous views on the project.
“The definition of whether or not it is necessary to consult indigenous peoples and/or traditional communities takes place at the initial stage of the environmental licensing process,” Petrobras said. Silveira, the energy minister, has said that a single Foz de Amazonas block off the coast of Amapa state could yield more than 5.6 billion barrels of oil, which would be the company's biggest discovery in over a decade.
The CCPIO, the highest Indigenous authority in Oiapoque, is composed of more than 60 caciques, or chieftains, representing over 8,000 people. They do not oppose the search for oil per se, but invoke what they say is a right to prior consultation by Petrobras, with supervision from the federal prosecutors’ office and Funai.
"Strategically, this prior consultation is our only safety net," 25-year-old Karipuna, who is studying to be a teacher, said near her home in the Santa Izabel village, where marshes fill with seawater at certain times of the year. Karipuna said he spoke for the coordinator of the CCPIO council of chieftains, who was absent for "health reasons."
In a telephone interview, Karipuna confirmed he worked at the town hall and that he is not a member of CCPIO – even though Petrobras used his words as its main argument to Ibama that Indigenous representatives supported drilling. He also backed away from his comments in favor of drilling.Asked about its mischaracterization of Karipuna, Petrobras cited the minutes of the May 2023 meeting, without elaborating.