Belo Monte Dam in Brazil - WITH UPDATES

Started by Toruk Makto, April 26, 2010, 11:17:03 AM

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Toruk Makto

http://www.amazonwatch.org/brazil-action-alert.php

URGENT ACTION ALERT

Contact the Brazilian Embassy to Stop the Belo Monte Dam!

The Brazilian government is pushing through plans to build the massive Belo Monte Dam in the Amazon. The dam would devastate an extensive area of the Amazon rainforest and threaten the survival of thousands of indigenous and traditional peoples who depend on the Xingu River for their livelihoods. Construction could begin this year.

The project has met with massive opposition both domestically and internationally. Indigenous people have not been adequately consulted about the project and are concerned that their rights will be violated if the project goes forward as planned. The project will directly affect two indigenous reserves along the Big Bend of the Xingu, and will indirectly affect indigenous reserves throughout the Xingu Basin.

Please call the Brazilian Embassy today and express your concern about the government's support for the Belo Monte Dam and its impact on indigenous people.

If you are in the US, please call (202) 238-2805 and/or (202) 238-2712. You can also fax a letter to (202) 238-2827.

UPDATE: As of 11am on April 20th, the US Embassy had blocked calls to the first number listed above, and they are now hanging up on people who call the second number. Please continue calling both numbers, and then go to the website URL at the top of this post and fill out the form to send an email to the US Embassy.

If you are outside the US, please use this website to find your nearest embassy.

When you call, please tell them:

  1. That you are concerned about blatant violations of indigenous peoples' rights that would occur if Belo Monte Dam was built;
  2. That you are concerned about the project's impacts on the Xingu River and the life it supports; and
  3. That you would like President Lula to cancel Belo Monte Dam and seek better alternatives for meeting Brazil's energy needs.

Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Toruk Makto

http://amazonwatch.org/newsroom/view_news.php?id=2143

EDITOR: This is the dam that James Cameron went to Brazil to campaign against.

Press Release
Amazon Watch, International Rivers, COIAB, Movimento Xingu Vivo Para Sempre
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    2010-08-05

Letícia Campos
, COIAB: +55 61-9949-6926
Verena Glass, Movimento Xingu Vivo Para Sempre: +55 11-9853-9950
Brent Millikan, International Rivers: +55 61-8153-7009
Christian Poirier, Amazon Watch: +1 510-666-7565

Indigenous Encampment Planned on Xingu River

Hundreds to Converge in Altamira to Highlight Threats of Proposed Belo Monte Dam
Members of the Press Invited to Attend

Altamira, Brazil - Hundreds of Brazilian indigenous leaders from the Amazon Basin will be joined by local riverbank dwellers and dam-affected people to participate in a regional meeting of the Terra Livre Encampment, in Altamira, Pará, from August 9-12. Organized by the Amazonian Indigenous Organization COIAB, and supported by a coalition of Brazilian and international organizations, participants will occupy the riverside port of Altamira and discuss threats posed by major infrastructure projects in the Amazon, in particular the controversial Belo Monte Dam. The meeting will end with a public rally in Altamira on August 12.

Named "In Defense of the Xingu: Against Belo Monte!", the Encampment is expected to be a seminal meeting for the indigenous resistance to Belo Monte Dam. Five hundred indigenous leaders from the Amazon Basin will meet together with local communities and leading Brazilian academics to discuss large infrastructure projects; the struggles of Brazilian indigenous and social movements in response; and issues around the demarcation of indigenous territories. Choosing to hold the summit in Altamira, a city that would be partially flooded by the planned Belo Monte Dam, brings the dam project and the Brazilian government's Accelerated Growth Program (PAC) to the forefront of the battle for indigenous rights and for a more ecologically sound development path.

The four-day meeting will feature presentations by indigenous and grassroots leaders, experts, as well as human rights and environmental lawyers. At the completion of the meeting, participants will draft a declaration to present at the National Terra Livre Encampment being held at Campo Grande, in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, from August 16-20, 2010. The declaration will also be presented at a press conference between 8am and 12 noon on Thursday, August 12, followed by a public rally in Altamira.


Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Toruk Makto

http://www.amazonwatch.org/newsroom/view_news.php?id=2150

Amazon Watch, International Rivers, COIAB, Cimi, Movimento Xingu Vivo Para Sempre
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    2010-08-10

Letícia Campos, COIAB: +55 61-9949-6926
Paul Wolters, Cimi: +55 61-1650-1666
Verena Glass, Movimento Xingu Vivo Para Sempre: +55 11-9853-9950
Brent Millikan, International Rivers: +55 61-8153-7009
Christian Poirier, Amazon Watch: +1 510-666-7565

Indigenous and Social Leaders Gather in Defense of the Xingu River, August 9-12
  Participants Affirm "The fight is not only against Belo Monte!"


Altamira, Brazil – At the second day of the gathering "In Defense of the Xingu: Against Belo Monte!", impassioned, steadfast speeches were given amidst colorful feather head dresses, and painted bodies and faces. Roughly 500 participants – indigenous people and riverbank dwellers, local farmers and social leaders – are meeting to discuss the grave environmental and social impacts of large infrastructure projects by the Brazilian government.

Specialists discussed their analysis of major developments in the Brazilian Amazon, such as the hydroelectric Belo Monte and Jirau dams; and the construction of highways, like the trans-Amazonian 163 linking Cuiabá (MT) to Santarem (PA).

The first round of discussions was chaired by Marcos Apurinã, the Executive Director of the Alliance of Indigenous Organizations in the Brazilian Amazon (COIAB); with the participation of professors from the Federal University of Pará (UFPA), Hermes Fonseca de Medeiros and Jose Herrera; along with William Carvalho, of the Federation of Organizations for Social and Educational Assistance (FASE).

As Professor De Medeiros noted, "Although it is impossible to measure fully the real impact of large projects like Belo Monte, it is important to be clear about what we're talking about. Thousands of families will become homeless. They will go without the natural resources that guarantee their survival, most importantly water. We must ask for public support to stop these aggressions against the environment and the traditional cultures of these people."

Human Rights Violations

In every speech participants underscored one vital point: the fight is not only against Belo Monte, which the government has insisted on building for over 30 years. The fight is against any state project that does not respect human rights. "When the government announces it will undertake large infrastructural projects, it is not thinking about what is best for the people. It is serving big business, big capital," said Moises Ribeiro of the Movement of Dam-Affected Peoples (MAB).

"The government has money to build its huge projects," Ribeiro continued. Therefore, its claims that there is no money to invest in public health, better living conditions for river dwellers or education for the indigenous, are simply inexcusable.

Reckless Spending

William Carvalho agrees with Ribeiro. "The government gives billions of reais to contractors, while many indigenous people die of hunger and a lack of health care and sanitation. Our campaign, therefore, is not only against Belo Monte, it is broader and more definitive. It is a campaign that urges public opinion to denounce the damage the federal government is planning to inflict on Brazil, against the Amazon and against the Brazilian people."

Indigenous Indignation

After comments by panelists, participants had the opportunity to speak out for themselves. For Kretã Kainging, leader of the Kaingang people and the Voice of Indigenous Peoples of the South (Arpinsul), Belo Monte is business as usual. A crime against the indigenous of Brazil, Belo Monte is like other projects already completed by the state, such as the construction of the Itaipu binational hydroelectric plant, built along the border between Brazil and Paraguay. "What kind of progress does the government want for us? We strongly believed in this government. They wanted to get in power and they did. They wanted to pass laws and did so, as well. Many of these same laws, however, go against the rights of indigenous peoples. Many of us put these people in power, and now they turn against us," Kainging stated.

For Marcos Apurinã, the major concern is who will maintain the traditions of indigenous peoples. "Money is not worth more than nature, than our traditions! So I would say to all indigenous people, we will not sell our blood – our children – for big business. We will fight. We will never give up!"

Rises in Crime and Prostitution

José Luiz of South Rondônia added that the damage caused by hydroelectric dams does not only affect the indigenous, but society in general. "Social, economic and cultural damage goes hand-in-hand with construction. Look at the state of Rondônia and you readily see the increase in violence and prostitution. Altamira runs a great risk of following in Rondônia's footsteps. And we cannot allow that to happen."


Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Taronyu


Robert Nantangä Tirea

Nice to see this posted here, I've actually been watching/reading about this for quite some time now. Really wish the government wasn't so financially corruptable down there. At least their judicial system stopped the sale of the building rights temporarily but there's just too much against the indigenous people there and not enough for them.

How does a man choose between fresh and fly?

COSPLAY LIKE A BOSS!

NotW Celebrity #11!

Toruk Makto

The Brazilian government has predictably caved to those with money. The Belo Monte dam contract has been signed. I guess money can buy anything in a country that is only interested in appearing progressive and prosperous.

Will have the URL for the story soon...


Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Taronyu


Toruk Makto

Sign the petition to help stop the destruction of the Xingu River tribal lands:

http://amazonwatch.org/belo-monte-petition.php

Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Toruk Makto

#8
http://amazonwatch.org/newsroom/view_news.php?id=2159


Amazon Watch
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    2010-08-27

Christian Poirier 415-487-9600 ext. 303 or 510-666-7565, [email protected]
Leila Salazar-Lopez 415-487-9600 ext. 327 or 415-341-5509, [email protected]


James Cameron and Avatar Cast Shine Spotlight on Real Battles to Defend "Pandoras on Earth"

"A Message From Pandora" Tells the Story of the Battle to Stop the Belo Monte Dam in Brazil's Amazon Rainforest

Timed with the re-release of Avatar in theatres today, highly acclaimed director James Cameron has teamed up with Amazon Watch to produce a short feature "A Message from Pandora." The documentary spotlights the battle to stop the massive Belo Monte Dam on the Xingu River in the Brazilian Amazon, which thousands of local Indigenous people have vowed to resist, citing its potentially devastating impact on their communities and the rainforest environment. A three-minute trailer of the feature was launched today on the Avatar movie website, inviting Avatar fans to join the campaign to stop the Belo Monte dam and defend the rainforest. The full version of "A Message from Pandora" will be available on the Avatar Special Edition DVD due out this fall.


A Message from Pandora

James Cameron became inspired by the story after he and cast members of Avatar including Sigourney Weaver and Joel David Moore traveled to the Xingu River in April accompanied by Amazon Watch and the Brazilian environmental organization Instituto Socioambiental. During their trip, the delegation visited Indigenous and river bank communities who would be adversely affected by the Belo Monte Dam Complex. The $17 billion project would divert the flow of the Xingu River; its reservoirs would flood 668 square kilometers, displace more than 20,000 people and generate methane – a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide.

Seeing the parallels between Avatar and the battles taking place viscerally in the tributaries of the Amazon, Cameron made a commitment to support the campaign led by local populations along the Xingu River to protect their sacred rainforest homeland and their way of life.

Reflecting on his visit to the Xingu River, Cameron commented: "Here were people whose lives were going to be altered irrevocably, whose communities were going to be destroyed, literally put under water, or affected negatively as the river's flow would change. For these people, it's the end of their world, as they know it. And they're reacting accordingly. They are there with their spears and their bows and arrows, saying that they will fight... We made a commitment to do what we could to help, to raise consciousness about this issue."

Sigourney Weaver notes that the Belo Monte Dam would be "a disaster for the Xingu River, for the rainforest and certainly for all the indigenous people and families living along the river. Their way of life will disappear." Weaver is also lending her support in defense of the Amazon and its people by collaborating with Amazon Watch, International Rivers, and Brazilian organizations on a state of the art digital animation to illustrate the devastating impacts of the dam – to be released next week.

"The Avatar spotlight comes at a critical time for the battle to stop the Belo Monte Dam. Just yesterday, the Brazilian government signed the contract to build the dam, ignoring warnings about the project's serious ecological, financial and technical risks. We invite Avatar fans in Brazil and around the world to stand with the people of the Amazon and persuade Brazilian authorities to opt for greener and less damaging energy alternatives," said Atossa Soltani, Executive Director of Amazon Watch.

Even though the Brazilian government is moving ahead with the project, opposition to dam construction continues to grow in Brazil. Earlier this month, communities directly affected by the dam project declared their unwavering resistance to the Belo Monte dam and the Brazilian government's shortsighted plans to build more than 60 large dams in the Brazilian Amazon.


Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Toruk Makto

 Oeyä eylan,

 If you have been considering a donation to support the LearnNavi site and forums, I urge you to instead send your tax-deductible donations to the Amazon Watch project at http://amazonwatch.org. This group is helping to do the work that will prevent us from killing our own Great Mother. Spread the word. This is a very worthy cause.


 - ta Markì
      ...and the LearnNavi Administrative Team

Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Payä Tìrol

Oe numeyu längu :/

While I'd normally argue that hydroelectric dams in the right place are better than fossil fuel plants for the same generation capacity, this particular project looks... silly, at best. I'll admit that I'm no expert on the topology of the region, but I'd anticipate the area, an Amazon tributary quite close to the Atlantic, to be relatively flat, resulting in pretty significant flooding in such an incredibly biodiverse area :/
Not only that, when a forest area is flooded like this, the dead plant matter starts to rot, which releases methane, which completely defeats the point of having a HE dam in the first place as an alternative to fossil fuel generation... Furthermore, it seems like the dam's generation capacity is expected to fall far short of its projected maximum capacity for large parts of the year due to the seasonal variations in the river flow. The dam's projections are apparently so poor that the Brazilian government had to tap into public funds due to lack of interest from the private sector.
I understand Brasil's need for expanded generation capacity, but this really looks like the wrong way to go about doing it.
Oeyä atanìl mì sìvawm, mipa tìreyä tìsìlpeyur yat terìng

Toruk Makto

#11
 They are just contributing to the runaway positive feedback that is killing the planet to try to support too damned many people.

Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Toruk Makto

#12
Amazon Watch - International Rivers - Movimento Xingu Vivo para Sempre

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE    2010-08-30

Leila Salazar-Lopez +1 415 341-5509, [email protected], Amazon Watch
Zachary Hurwitz, +1 415 341 5264, [email protected], International Rivers
Verena Glass +55 11-9853-9950, [email protected], Xingu Alive Forever Movement


Sigourney Weaver Narrates New Google Earth Animation on
Brazil's Controversial Belo Monte Dam


10-minute Tour in 3-D Highlights the Dam's Harmful Impacts on
Xingu River and Greener Alternatives
Defending the Rivers of the Amazon, with Sigourney Weaver

San Francisco, CA – Amazon Watch and International Rivers have teamed up to create a state-of-the-art 10-minute Google Earth 3-D tour and video narrated by actress Sigourney Weaver, with technical assistance from Google Earth Outreach, in support of Brazil's Movimento Xingu Vivo Para Sempre (Xingu River Forever Alive Movement). The video and tour allow viewers to learn about the harmful impacts of, and alternatives to the massive Belo Monte Dam Complex on the Amazon's Xingu River. A Portuguese version of the video and tour, narrated by well-known Brazilian actor Dira Paes, will be launched next week.

The interactive tour and video call attention to the Belo Monte Dam, which, if built, would be the third-largest hydroelectric dam in the world. The dam would divert the flow of the Xingu River, one of the most important tributaries of the Amazon River, in order to produce electricity for industrial mining operations in the region. The dam's reservoirs would flood 668 square kilometers, displace more than 20,000 people, and generate methane, a lethal greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Late last week, the Brazilian government signed the concession to build the $17 billion-dollar project, ignoring local, national, and international opposition, proven financial and technical risks, and the ready availability of clean energy alternatives.

Weaver narrates the 10-minute tour and video, called "Defending the Rivers of the Amazon", which illustrates the impacts that diverting the river along a 100-km stretch would have on the two indigenous tribes who have lived there for generations. The tour also animates the flooding associated with the dam, impacts on the region's spectacular biodiversity, and maps over 60 dams planned for the Brazilian Amazon over the next two decades.

The original concept for the Google Earth interactive tour and video emerged when Avatar director James Cameron and cast members of his film, including Sigourney Weaver, traveled to the Xingu River in April, accompanied by Amazon Watch and the Brazilian environmental organization Instituto Socioambiental (ISA). After speaking with some of the indigenous tribes and riverbank families who would be directly affected, Weaver commented that the Belo Monte Dam would be "a disaster for the Xingu River, for the rainforest, and certainly for all the indigenous people and families living along the river. Their way of life will disappear."

Antonia Melo, a leader and spokesperson of the Xingu River Forever Alive Movement, based in the city of Altamira, Pará, near to where the dam complex would be built, described the potential for the Google Earth animation to help inform local people about the impacts of Belo Monte and other hydroelectric dams: "Even for people who live along the Xingu River itself, the impacts of damming the river are difficult to understand. This animation can help the local population visualize the potential damage caused by Belo Monte, and can encourage them to take action."

Because the Brazilian government is moving ahead with the project, resistance to the dam is growing. "Earlier this month, communities directly affected by Belo Monte declared their unwavering resistance to the dam and to the Brazilian government's plans to build additional dams in the Brazilian Amazon. International groups will continue to support the indigenous peoples and social movements who are fighting Belo Monte until the project is stopped," said Brent Millikan, Amazon Program Director of International Rivers.

"Because Google Earth provides such a realistic model of the real earth, it can allow both ordinary people and decision makers to visualize and understand complex environmental and social issues more easily and deeply," said Rebecca Moore of Google Earth Outreach. "Ideally, this can lead to a more informed and constructive dialogue, especially for controversial issues such as the Belo Monte Dam. The tour created by Amazon Watch and International Rivers is at the cutting-edge of Google Earth animation."

The launch of the Belo Monte Dam interactive tour and video is timed with last Friday's re-release of Avatar in theaters. James Cameron has also produced a short feature about the Belo Monte dam called "A Message from Pandora", the trailer for which can be viewed on Avatar's site inviting movie fans to join the battle to stop the dam.


Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Robert Nantangä Tirea

I'm very happy to see this, they did a fantastic job on the video, a LOT of very good information. I'll be sharing it around quite a bit.

How does a man choose between fresh and fly?

COSPLAY LIKE A BOSS!

NotW Celebrity #11!

Redpaintednavi

Yes, this information really deserves to be spread to as many as possible. I try to spread it to friends, acquaintances, political parties, environmental groups, press, and many others. This is truly an important issue.

Redpaintednavi

#15
A video about the Xingu and its peoples:

Heart of Brazil: People of the Xingu




Toruk Makto

Received from Amazon Watch this morning...



A Message from Sheyla Juruna


On behalf of the Juruna Indigenous people of the Xingu River Basin, I am writing to ask for your support to help stop the Belo Monte Dam. At any moment, the Brazilian government could break ground on the Belo Monte Dam, causing irreparable impacts for our communities, the environment and the global climate. We are at a critical time in the campaign to stop the Belo Monte Dam and it is essential that the international community take action now to defend the Amazon and support indigenous peoples' rights.

The Xingu is home to over 25,000 indigenous people from 18 ethnic groups, including the Juruna, Arara, Xikrin, Kayapó, Xipaya, Kuruaia, Asurini, and Parakanã. It is also home to thousands of riverbank communities and approximately 100,000 people in the city of Altamira – 1/3 of which will be flooded if the Belo Monte Dam is built. If the Dam is built, it will divert water from the Big Bend, known as the "Volta Grande", of the Xingu – a 100km stretch of the river that is the cradle of Xingu's indigenous civilizations. This destruction would be devastating to the Juruna and Arara as we will be displaced by flooding or not able to survive on our ancestral lands because our river will be diverted and dried out. The Pakisamba village where my Juruna brothers and sisters rely on the river for fishing and boat transportation will be especially affected.

The government says that Juruna will not be directly or seriously affected, but we do not believe this. We have not been consulted and we do not want the government to speak for us. We are against the Belo Monte Dam and we are committed to fight with our bodies and souls... to defend our lives and the life of our river.

Please join us by signing the petition to the Brazilian government today.

The government is moving quickly to give the green light to begin the construction of roads, work-camps and airports, while other environmental and social conditions in question are being reviewed by the courts. We cannot allow for any construction to begin as this will pave the way for the first of many dams, including 60 more dams planned in the Brazilian Amazon alone, to be built. Even if all the environmental and social conditions are met, Belo Monte will still cause irreversible harm that we cannot allow to happen. What we need to do is encourage our government to defend the Amazon, respect indigenous peoples' rights, invest in energy efficiency and alternative energy.

Please help us defend our river and future generations by signing this petition.

Please help us gather over 40,000 petitions – the approximate number of people that would be affected by the Belo Monte Dam if built – so we can make a special delivery to our government before any construction begins. If you have already signed the petition, please watch the video and share the petition with at least five friends or family members.

Thank you for your support!

For the Amazon and our future generations,

Sheyla Juruna
Juruna Tribal Leader

Lì'fyari leNa'vi 'Rrtamì, vay set 'almong a fra'u zera'u ta ngrrpongu
Na'vi Dictionary: http://files.learnnavi.org/dicts/NaviDictionary.pdf

Taronyu


Teylar Ta Palulukankelku

I signed the petition.

May all of the amazon tribes live in peace!
Set oe slolu Kxitx, hifkeyä ska'ayu

The spam section: Where the random s**t happens ;D.

I can't deny it: I'm a smiley addict ;D.

;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

Vawm tsamsiyu

Quote from: Teylar Ta Palulukankelku on October 27, 2010, 01:32:00 PM
I signed the petition.

May all of the amazon tribes live in peace!
So did I. I hope there stoped in time
they killed the [you] tag