(ANM). Nevertheless, the IX Sectorial Plan was crystal clear when it asserted that,
despite the accumulated knowledge, there is a need for new geological geophysical
geotechnical researches on a more detailed scale to evaluate the mineral potential of
the continental shelf.
141 Transformation of marine minerals into products with high
added value is a priority in Brazil, as it is expected to stimulate socioeconomic
development.
A mining company which pioneered in exploring the Brazilian Blue Amazon is
TWB Mineração, and the company’s history offers pertinent lessons for the sustainable management of the Blue Amazon. After exploring the Brazilian continental
shelf for almost two decades, the company has been prospecting for limestone algae
in the region of Archipelago of Trindade and Martim Vaz. According to the
company's executive manager, Luiz Eduardo Anchieta da Silva, the company
seeks a another lithotamniun variation which is lighter and rich than similar species
found near the coast.
142 Despite the promising result, the TWB got a setback. The
company had its licenses canceled by the National Mining Agency, because the
government considered that the activity was being conducted in international areas.
This situation simply endorses the need for further detailed investigation on the
Brazilian actual submarine frontiers, so that investments can be made without legal
uncertainty.
However, despite its potentially positive socioeconomic impacts, mining is
known to have a negative ecological footprint and to harm the marine environment.
According to a 2011 Report on the mineral potential of the Brazilian continental
shelf, the impact of deep-sea dredging operations depends on the nature of the
physical impacts and the characteristics of the benthic communities at stake.
Hence, lobster, herring, crabs and others species that move and feed on the seafloor
may be endangered by offshore mineral dredging. Deep-water ecosystems may also
suffer from the mining of polymetallic nodules, given that these operations remove
along the fauna and epifauna which colonize the nodules’ sites. The mining of
hydrothermal sulfides (vents) is also likely to affect a biota of odd and littleknown characteristics, as deep ocean ecosystems are the ones with the greatest
biodiversity on the planet.
143
In light of such ecological impacts, it is worrisome that current Brazilian legislation governing mineral exploration and exploitation makes no distinction between
underwater and terrestrial areas. The Mining Code regulates the access to mineral
resources, their research and exploitation regimes, as well as other aspects of the
141 CIRM, IX Sectorial Plan for Marine Resources, 2016–2019, 10.
142 Mr Anchieta da Silva has declared that “our research points to excellent product results in fruit
growing, soybeans and especially sugarcane.” See Brasil reivindica extensão maior da Amazônia
Azul, 26 September 2011, Carlos Vasconcellos. Valor Econômico. Available online.
143 See Cavalcanti. at 87–92. Unfortunately, that was the newest report this study could find with
public access online. In fact, the REMPLAC section of the CIRM website (https://www.marinha.
mil.br/secirm/remplac) is outdated and lacks reports on the activities and measures carried out in the
scope of the Program. Apart from that one, a Report on non-living resources of the Brazilian shelf
was ordered by the Brazilian Ministry for Mines and Energy in 2009. For more, see Martins (2009).
10.2 How Far Has Brazil Gone?
341
despite the accumulated knowledge, there is a need for new geological geophysical
geotechnical researches on a more detailed scale to evaluate the mineral potential of
the continental shelf.
141 Transformation of marine minerals into products with high
added value is a priority in Brazil, as it is expected to stimulate socioeconomic
development.
A mining company which pioneered in exploring the Brazilian Blue Amazon is
TWB Mineração, and the company’s history offers pertinent lessons for the sustainable management of the Blue Amazon. After exploring the Brazilian continental
shelf for almost two decades, the company has been prospecting for limestone algae
in the region of Archipelago of Trindade and Martim Vaz. According to the
company's executive manager, Luiz Eduardo Anchieta da Silva, the company
seeks a another lithotamniun variation which is lighter and rich than similar species
found near the coast.
142 Despite the promising result, the TWB got a setback. The
company had its licenses canceled by the National Mining Agency, because the
government considered that the activity was being conducted in international areas.
This situation simply endorses the need for further detailed investigation on the
Brazilian actual submarine frontiers, so that investments can be made without legal
uncertainty.
However, despite its potentially positive socioeconomic impacts, mining is
known to have a negative ecological footprint and to harm the marine environment.
According to a 2011 Report on the mineral potential of the Brazilian continental
shelf, the impact of deep-sea dredging operations depends on the nature of the
physical impacts and the characteristics of the benthic communities at stake.
Hence, lobster, herring, crabs and others species that move and feed on the seafloor
may be endangered by offshore mineral dredging. Deep-water ecosystems may also
suffer from the mining of polymetallic nodules, given that these operations remove
along the fauna and epifauna which colonize the nodules’ sites. The mining of
hydrothermal sulfides (vents) is also likely to affect a biota of odd and littleknown characteristics, as deep ocean ecosystems are the ones with the greatest
biodiversity on the planet.
143
In light of such ecological impacts, it is worrisome that current Brazilian legislation governing mineral exploration and exploitation makes no distinction between
underwater and terrestrial areas. The Mining Code regulates the access to mineral
resources, their research and exploitation regimes, as well as other aspects of the
141 CIRM, IX Sectorial Plan for Marine Resources, 2016–2019, 10.
142 Mr Anchieta da Silva has declared that “our research points to excellent product results in fruit
growing, soybeans and especially sugarcane.” See Brasil reivindica extensão maior da Amazônia
Azul, 26 September 2011, Carlos Vasconcellos. Valor Econômico. Available online.
143 See Cavalcanti. at 87–92. Unfortunately, that was the newest report this study could find with
public access online. In fact, the REMPLAC section of the CIRM website (https://www.marinha.
mil.br/secirm/remplac) is outdated and lacks reports on the activities and measures carried out in the
scope of the Program. Apart from that one, a Report on non-living resources of the Brazilian shelf
was ordered by the Brazilian Ministry for Mines and Energy in 2009. For more, see Martins (2009).
10.2 How Far Has Brazil Gone?
341