In a statement to which the Lusa agency had access, EcoAngola states that the letter expresses concern about the state of the country's environmental conservation areas.
The document, published on 23 December 2020 for the collection of signatures, was sent to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Environment, with copies to the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, the Ministry of Energy and Águas, to the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights and the Ministry of the Interior, on 10 February this year.
According to the statement, the main purpose of publishing and sending this letter was to encourage dialogue between civil society and the ministries involved in the preparation of the proposed law that will change the current law on environmental conservation areas, which will allow the exploitation of mineral and petroleum resources within the environmental zones.
By encouraging dialogue, environmentalists intend to promote reflection and a better understanding of intentions, risks, mitigation measures, benefits, and consequences in the short, medium and long term, at local, regional and global levels.
"At the same time we would like to draw attention to the state of neglect that most conservation areas are in and provide suggestions on how to overcome budgetary and technical-human deficiencies that prevent them from being truly protected and used for tourism. wildlife, "say environmentalists.
To establish channels of dialogue between government agencies involved in this action and civil society, EcoAngola promoted a digital conference on the value of conservation areas for developing countries, in which the Ministry of Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas and the Oil and Gas clarified the locations and the type of activity that is intended to be done.
In this conference, the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Environment and the National Institute of Biodiversity and Conservation did not participate, although invited, however, EcoAngola emphasizes the openness of both institutions for clarification on this topic.
The Government announced that several public tenders are being carried out to carry out the work to evaluate the potential of several interior basins, namely those of Kassanje, in the provinces of Malanje and Uíje, and that of Etosha / Okavango, in Cunene, Cuando Cubango and Moxico - in a total area of about 520,000 square kilometers - sedimentary basins, in which there is a strong probability of crude oil and natural gas.
According to the executive, of the total of these basins, only 20 percent of the total area is located in protected areas and the studies that started in 2010, allowed to define their limits and the depth of sediments, an important factor to assess the possibility of hydrocarbon generation. .
The next phase involves carrying out studies of environmental impact, restoration and repopulation, to guard against possible situations that may cause damage to the environment, although this is not expected, since the collection of samples will be done on the surface.
According to information from the authorities, accessibility studies will also be carried out to these sedimentary basins to allow the teams to move on the ground and ascertain the geographical situation of the area, through topographic surveys and the acquisition of satellite images, which will show in detail the occupation of space.
The conclusions of these studies will be decisive for the decision to bid or not in the protected areas of these basins, say the authorities.
The environmental organization calls on all parties involved to continue on the path of transparency, openness to civil society and debate on these issues, ensuring that the processes take place within legal frameworks and with the best possible practices.
"EcoAngola will continue to be attentive to the development of these research, exploration and bidding processes for oil and gas resources. We look forward to the publication of the results of the different environmental impact studies and other documents carried out within the scope of these activities", reads the statement.
