Deforestation of the Amazon has slowed in recent years
Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies has again postponed a vote on controversial changes that would ease a key law on forest protection.
After a marathon 12-hour debate that saw renewed splits over the proposals, the vote was put off until next week.
The Forest Code currently requires that 80 per cent of a landholding in the Amazon remain forest, 20 per cent in other areas.
Proponents of change say the law impedes economic development, and Brazil must open more land for agriculture.
Brazil’s Forest Code, enacted in 1934 and subsequently amended in 1965, sets out how much of his land a farmer can deforest.
The changes were put forward by Aldo Rebelo, leader of Brazil’s Communist Party (PCdoB), and were backed by a group in Congress known as the “Ruralists”, who want Brazil to develop its agribusiness sector.
Rebelo argues that the current rules unfairly discriminate against small farmers, denying them the chance to grow more and climb out of poverty.
Other changes include reducing the amount of forest that must be preserved along the banks of streams and rivers.
It was also proposed to grant an amnesty to landowners with property below a certain size who had cut down trees on their land before 2009. (Excerpt from BBC)
