São Paulo – Brazilian oil company Petrobras is going to turn 500 million Brazilian reals (US$ 309 million) to environmental projects between 2008 and 2012. The funds should be used for sponsorship, strengthening environmental organisations and spreading information about sustainable development.
The Petrobras Environment Program was launched by the company last week. The enterprise is going to choose, through public selection, a series of projects to be benefited. Of the US$ 309 million, Petrobras is going to turn 60 million reals (US$ 37 million) to programs selected by the public. The projects must be developed over a period of two years, and enrolment is already open.
The theme elected by the company is "Water and climate: contributions to sustainable development". The previous program focussed on water and biodiversity. According to the Institutional Communications executive manager at Petrobras, Wilson Santarosa, the program is a company contribution to the construction of a Brazilian environmental agenda and restates the Petrobras engagement with protection of the ecosystem of the sites it operates in.
The Petrobras environmental program for 2008 to 2012 should follow three lines of operation. One is the management of waterways, with the objective of reverting the process of degradation of water resources and promoting its rational use. Another line is the recovery of species and coastal environments and the third is the capture of carbon and emissions to recover degraded areas, conserving forests and natural areas.
Petrobras is going to promote, between August 20 and September 15, events in several cities in Brazil to clarify its environmental program. Company technicians are going to explain the rules of the program and how the projects should be elaborated. The idea is to guide those interested in the development of proposals.
*Translated by Mark Ament
