Gas
pipeline in Brazil seen as a model
By Sara Miller Llana
Manacapuru, Brazil - Deep in the middle of the Amazonian rain
forest, buses whisk men in orange work suits off to help lay
down a pipeline that is today one of the region's most remote
energy infrastructure projects.
It's enough to make even the most moderate environmentalist
blanch.
But after years of opposition, a plan to transport gas 400
miles from its source at a clearing called Urucu, passing 80
species of rare orchids on its way to the Amazonas state capital
of Manaus, has been met with reserved praise, even from hard-core
activists.
The project by the Brazilian state-controlled company Petrobras
is emerging as a model for reducing environmental and social
impact, say many observers. And it comes as dozens of other
oil companies are looking to explore an expanse that, while
among the world's most biologically diverse, also happens to
be the largest unexplored region with hydrocarbon potential
after Antarctica.
"Prior to the discovery at Urucu, all petroleum produced
in South America came from oil fields close to the Andes. But
Urucu is situated more than 1,000 miles to the east … and
everything in between must now be considered to have hydrocarbon
production potential," says Tim Killeen a senior researcher
at Conservation International. "If this is not done right,
we are going to lose the most important part of the most important
forest on the planet."
The Urucu
pipeline project is especially key since it comes at a time
when Latin American leaders are looking toward energy
integration projects – such as Venezuelan President Hugo
Chávez's "Pipeline of the South," the 5,000-mile,
$20 billion pipeline that would transport gas across the entire
continent – plans that some have compared to the cutting
up of the American West to lay down railways.
Here in Manacapuru, 50 miles west of Manaus, small fishing
boats ply the Solimoes River. Young men blare calypso music
as an afternoon fades, old men play dominoes along the riverwalk.
For them, the pipeline, which will pass near the town to eventually
provide electricity to the 1.5 million residents of Manaus,
represents a balance between preserving the forest and providing
for the basic needs of their population.
That sentiment
was expressed by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio
Lula da Silva when he approved the pipeline in 2004. "If
people want development that preserves the environment, we
have to have energy," he was quoted as saying. "It's
no good people saying the Amazon has to be the sanctuary
of humanity and forget there are 20 million people living
there."
For residents of Manacapuru, where simple homes are built
on stilts and 75 percent of residents drink untreated water,
the pipeline's greatest benefit has been the 4,000 local jobs
created. Petrobras agreed to hire three-quarters of its workforce
from the local community.
But during
the construction of megaprojects, often the immediate benefits
give way to long-term damage. One of the biggest threats
when such pipelines are built is the permanent access roads
that parallel them: Roads not only contribute to deforestation
but lead to population influxes that strain social services.
But for this project Petrobras has built hardly any permanent
roads, depending instead on boats and helicopters to bring
in supplies and the workforce. "That is a highlight," says
Virgilio Mauricio Viana, the environmental secretary of the
state of Amazonas, in an interview in Manaus.
The 260,000 residents who live along the pipeline's path were
invited to local meetings in each of seven affected municipalities.
Stuart Pimm, a conservation ecologist at Duke University in
Durham, N.C. who studies oil exploration in the Amazon, says
that environmental assessments should always be done by independent
authorities, but too often are contracted by the oil firms.
Mr. Viana says the state pushed Petrobras to carry out an
independent environmental study with the local university,
and then simplified the language into a document copied 5,000
times and distributed to locals.
As compensation, Petrobras agreed to build seven secondary
branch pipelines, adding over $30 million to the $1.3 billion
price of the project, so that local communities can also use
cleaner gas, instead of diesel fuel, for electricity. They
also awarded the state government a $21 million grant for social
services, such as jobs training, potable water, and free healthcare
services.
Viana says
that the company was willing to take on additional costs,
in part, to overcome years of opposition that had delayed
the pipeline's construction. But in an age when local residents
are presenting class-action lawsuits over oil spills – such
as in Ecuador – and demanding greater compensation
for natural resources, big oil companies have no choice but
to
respond.
That is
why, observers say, Urucu is such an important template.
Exploration plans for the region are dramatic, as oil prices
stay high and demand from places such as China and India grows.
In Brazil, Petrobras plans to build another pipeline and has
plans to explore hydrocarbons farther west. In Peru, 70 percent
of the most pristine Amazon forest is zoned for oil and gas. "In
western Amazon countries, we are concerned by the large areas
of land that are now open to oil and gas exploration," says
Mr. Pimm.
"The majors have learned that it is good business to
manage environmental issues with great attention and detail.
They learned from past mistakes," Mr. Killeen says. "The
smaller companies are less subject to the pressures of the
market place; many are unknown entities and there is reason
to be skeptical of their commitment to environmental issues."
Petrobras officials say they will provide gas to Manaus by
the spring of 2008.
Still,
there are some groups that refuse the Manaus pipeline construction
altogether, says Thadeu Melo, a spokesperson for
Greenpeace's Amazon Campaign. The Brazilian government recently
granted preliminary approval to two massive hydroelectric dams
in the region, and environmentalists are concerned about soy
farming spreading into the forest. "The solution is better
than we have now," Mr. Melo says. "But it is not
the best. We still claim cleaner and renewable sources of energy
for developing Brazil."
But Urucu
could provide a demonstration effect in the region, pushing
residents to demand more from state-run oil companies
and multinationals that invest in the area, says Mark London,
coauthor of the recent book "The Last Forest" and
one of the first journalists to report on the conflict between
development and preservation of the region in 1980. People
might ask, he says, "Why can't you have environmentally
smart projects like Urucu in Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia?"
Even if
done responsibly, though, oil discoveries will have lasting
effects on the region. When asked if she supports the
pipeline, Adele Schwartz Benzaken, the director of a local
hospital in Manaus who is studying the rise in prostitution
along the pipeline, takes a long time to answer. "I'm
not against it," she says finally.
"But," she adds, "Maybe
the towns will have more money, but at the cost of more prostitution?
Things are
built, at the same time other things are destroyed."
Sara
Miller Llana is a staff writers of
The Christian Science Monitor. Petroleumworld
not necessarily share these views.
Editor's Note: This article was first published by The
Christian Science Monitor, July 23, 2007. Petroleumworld
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