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Proposed Bill Wants to Open Lenis Maranhenses to Development
Proposal will allow tourism businesses and remove villages from protected area
Sep.16.2019 2:00PM
João Pedro Pitombo
The Lençóis Maranhenses National Park might have its borders changed, opening areas for tourist resorts and removing about 2000 people who live inside the park.
The proposal to change the park boundaries is in the Senate and has the support of the Bolsonaro government. Within the proposal, villages such as Travosa, Betânia, and Ponta Mangue will no longer be part of the environmental protection area and will have more flexibility for development.
With an area of 150,000 hectares, Lençóis Maranhenses is an ecosystem formed by dunes, freshwater lagoons, sandbanks, and mangroves. The national park was created in 1981.
Lençóis Maranhenses (MA) (Foto: Zanone Fraissat/Folhapress, AGENCIA)
The prospect of boundary changes in the park has led to criticism from environmentalists and anthropologists, generating concern among villagers. Local politicians are also debating the issue.
More:
https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/scienceandhealth/2019/09/proposed-bill-wants-to-open-lencois-maranhenses-to-development.shtml
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More images of Lençóis Maranhenses National Park:
https://tinyurl.com/yy3ca7s8
Have never heard of this region before reading this news. Who on earth would consider screwing with this amazing place, not to mention the absolutely necessary entirety of the Amazon River and forest?