Meio Ambiente

Aiming to avoid an environmental disaster in Brazil as occurred in the Gulf of Mexico last month, the minister of the Environment, Izabella Teixeira, met the secretary of State for the Environment, Marilene Ramos, on Friday (May 7) in Rio de Janeiro to discuss prevention strategies for oil extraction in the country. Experts from the Navy, INEA, IBAMA and Petrobras also attended the meeting.

To achieve the prevention and the mapping of risks on the oil rigs in Brazil, five working groups were formed. Among other initiatives it is expected the consolidation of a national contingency plan, the creation of a crisis committee and the regulation of the use of new technologies to control oil spills.

According to the minister Izabella, a team from the Brazilian Institute of Petroleum (IBP) has been sent to Mexico. The group will monitor the work and the technology used to minimize the impact caused by the disaster, and should bring to Brazil the result of these experiences.

The minister said that technicians from IBAMA, INEA and IBP will prepare a study to improve methods of environmental risk assessment, which will be incorporated in the environmental licensing process. "We intend to improve the exchange of information among environmental agencies to establish criteria for accident prevention. We will also study the feasibility of regulating the use of new technologies to control oil spills", explained Izabella.