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Action Alert: Brazil's Xingu River Dam to Damn Amazonian Rainforests and Peoples
The wild and free Xingu River is critical to maintaining intact the Amazon, its peoples and the Earth we share
By
Rainforest Portal, a project of Ecological Internet
-
June 30, 2008
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1.) Inform Yourself
NOTE: This is a protest, not a petition, sending emails to many real decision makers on matters vital to the Earth.
Caption:
The Xingu river is worth more to Amazonian development intact than dammed (link)
The Brazilian government is planning to build what would be the world´s third
largest dam on the Xingu River in the Brazilian Amazon. The Xingu River in
northeast Brazil is a tributary of the Amazon River. The Belo Monte Dam, meant
principally to fuel the expansion of aluminum foundries and other industrial
plants in the Amazon, would require diverting nearly the entire flow of the
Xingu, drying up the “Big Bend” of the Xingu and its tributary, the Bacajá, home
to hundreds of indigenous people. Native people upstream would also be affected
by the dam´s impacts on fish stocks, their principal food source.
In May, one thousand indigenous people, in addition to social movements and
environmentalists gathered in the town of Altamira, on the Xingu River, to
protest the plans for Belo Monte and other dams on the Xingu. In the “Xingu
Forever Alive” letter, they stated “We will not accept the construction of dams,
large or small, on the Xingu and its tributaries”. The Amazon basin with its
intact rainforests and rivers is a critical ecosystem that must remain intact
for the Planet to remain inhabitable. Please tell Brazil´s President Lula and
other decision makers in the Brazilian government that you support the position
of indigenous peoples of the rainforest - that Brazil has better ways of
providing its future energy needs than destroying the mighty Xingu River.
Sample Email Sent
An intact Amazon is a requirement for global ecological sustainability
Exmo. Presidente Luís Inácio Lula da Silva
Dear President Lula,
I wish to express my deep and sincere concern regarding
your government's plans to dam the Xingu River. The
ill-conceived project will have enormous negative impacts
upon your country's water resources, regional climate,
natural ecosystems, ecological sustainability and future
potential for advancement by local peoples and your great
nation. I strongly urge you to cancel the project.
Natural biodiversity and intact ecosystems including wild
rivers and ancient rainforests provide essential ecosystem
services to your citizens including water retention, flood
prevention, climate regulation, soil regeneration and
wildlife habitat. The proposed Belo Monte Dam will damage
your nation's hydrology -- leading to greater water
scarcity, diminishment of the critical Amazon ecosystem,
national security threats, and economic decline.
Brazil is becoming increasingly prone to drought, which
climate change is exacerbating. Flooding and destroying the
hydrology of massive portions of the Amazon basin will
further worsen the situation. Your natural river systems
are one of your nation's greatest assets and should not be
so hastily diminished for short-term economic gain. Water
is a human right, ecosystems matter; and without intact
water providing ecosystems, economies and societies cannot
function.
Brazil has the opportunity and responsibility to lead South
America and the world in achieving environmental
sustainability. I therefore respectfully add my voice to
those in Brazil and around the world, imploring you to
cancel the Belo Monte Dam project, and other infrastructure
development that will destroy Amazon rainforests and
waterways, in the interest of long-term ecological, social
and economic sustainability of your great nation. I hope
this protest shows the world is watching, and expecting
wise long-term leadership from you.
Respectfully,
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