Bolsonaro’s decree extinguishes environmental participatory councils

Bolsonaro government has extinguished all participatory councils of the federal public administration not instituted by law, through the Decree No. 9,759 of April 11, 2019. The measure dismantled, within the Ministry of the Environment, the Brazilian Forum on Climate Change (FBMC), the National Plan for the Recovery of Native Vegetation (Planaveg) and its respective Commission (Conaveg), the National Biodiversity Commission (Conabio) and the National Forestry Commission (Conaflor).

Carlos Bocuhy, president of the Brazilian Institute of Environmental Protection (Proam), told the website O Eco that the measure “lacks motivation and justification, presenting itself in a superficial and ideological way, without showing data, numbers, and criteria for an effective assessment of the functioning of the councils.” The Instituto SocioAmbiental (ISA), also heard by the report, classified the decree as an attack against the Constitution, which stresses the need for social participation in the elaboration of public policies, and makes clear “the authoritarian vision of the government”.