Amazon Under Siege: Organized Crime threatens Climate Summit and Rainforest Protection
As the COP30 climate conference approaches in Belém, Brazil, a disturbing reality has emerged: the fight to protect the Amazon rainforest is inextricably linked to dismantling powerful organized crime networks. A growing body of evidence reveals that criminal groups are not only exploiting the region’s natural resources but actively undermining efforts toward enduring development and even threatening critical infrastructure.
The Criminalization of Conservation
The scale of the problem is notable. Illegal gold mining, illegal logging, and drug trafficking are identified as the greatest threats to both the population and the environment of the Amazon region, according to a study published in October by the Brazilian Intelligence Agency (Abin) and the Public Safety Forum. These illicit activities are fueled by rising gold prices, a weak state presence, and porous borders with neighboring countries including Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Bolivia, ecuador, Suriname, and Guyana.
“The lucrative cartel business is based on a combination of several factors,†the study states. The Red Command (CV), a notorious Brazilian criminal gang, has emerged as a dominant force in illegal mining, according to Rodrigo Ghiringhelli, a professor at the Pontifical Catholic university (PUC) of Rio Grande do Sul and member of the Brazilian Public Security Forum. He explained in an interview that the CV “is the most importent institution in the mining illegal. This, in addition to illegal logging and drug trafficking.â€
Expansion and Violence in the Amazon
The influence of these criminal organizations is rapidly expanding. A december 2024 report from the Public Security Forum, titled “Cartographies of Violence in the Amazon 2024,†paints an alarming picture. The report highlights the growing power of cartels and the escalating violence associated with their struggle for territorial control. “The outlook is alarming,†the report states, noting that the fight for control has led to murders and other criminal activities, causing irreparable damage.
The study concludes that control of economic activities – both legal and illegal – in the Amazon is no longer simply a public security issue, but a significant obstacle to sustainable development. The FBSP estimates that criminal gangs are now present in at least 260 Amazonian municipalities, with half of those under the direct control of the CV. Illegal gold mining is particularly devastating, transforming the rainforest into a polluted landscape as trees are felled and mercury is used to extract the precious metal.
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Threats to Infrastructure and Local Populations
The reach of the CV extends beyond resource extraction. In Belém, the host city for COP30, the criminal organization exerts significant control. A recent investigation by The Intercept revealed that, shortly before the climate summit, the CV ordered the daily suspension of work on an expansion of a substation that supplies electricity to the city, beginning at 3:00 p.m. Following this incident,Brazil’s Minister of Mines and Energy,Alexandre Silveira,requested increased security measures.
The impact on local communities is profound.A resident of Belém, speaking to the Brazilian newspaper Folha de S. Paulo, described a climate of fear were residents must adhere to the rules of the “bosses,†merchants pay for protection, and instructions are disseminated via WhatsApp under a strict “code of silence.†Fears of reprisal surged after a police raid in Rio de Janeiro on October 29 resulted in the deaths of over 120 people,many of whom were linked to the CV.
Goverment Response and Historical Roots
In response to the escalating violence, Brazilian President Lula ordered the deployment of armed forces to Belém during the COP30 summit, initiating a military operation known as “Guarantee of Law and Order†(GLO). This operation has also been used to secure other major events, including the G20 summit in November 2024 and the BRICS summit in July of the same year, both held in Rio de Janeiro.
The origins of the Comando Vermelho date back over 40 years, to the era of the brazilian military dictatorship (1964-1989). The organization began as an alliance between political prisoners and common criminals within the Cândido Mendes prison, on an island near Rio de Janeiro, initially aiming to improve prison conditions and prevent crime among inmates. Since then, the CV has grown into one of the most powerful crime syndicates in Latin America.
Following the October massacre in Rio de Janeiro,the Brazilian Congress established a parliamentary commission of inquiry on November 4 to dismantle the organized crime network and investigate its infiltration into political and social institutions. The convergence of environmental crisis and criminal activity in the Amazon demands a comprehensive and coordinated response, one that recognizes the fight for climate protection and the fight against organized crime as fundamentally intertwined.
