Brazil cancels environmental license for biggest hydroelectric Amazon dam

New Delhi: Recently, Brazil's environmental agency IBAMA denied license to the largest hydroelectric dam to be built on Brazilian Amazon because of rising concerns over the future of indigenous communities and biodiversity in the area.

On 4th August Brazilian government canceled the approval process of Sao Luiz do Tapajos Dam that would have caused irreversible harm to the local environment and Munduruku tribe. If the project had gone ahead, the 8,000-megawatt giant dam in the heart of Amazon would have been the country’s second largest hydroelectric power station, after the controversial Belo Monte dam and the sixth-largest hydroelectric dam in the world.

The ministry's enforcement arm (IBAMA) said that the project's rejection is a major win for both environment and indigenous tribe.

Some of the risks identified by IBAMA but neglected by the power firms backing the project included climate-changing emissions, consequences for local people, and impacts on biodiversity, aquatic ecosystems, migratory fish and fisheries, according to Reuters. In order to increase its energy matrix, Brazil is now planning to focus more on renewable ways for producing power.