The Brazilian government will use part of the money that was returned to the state after corruption trials to protect the Amazon rainforest amid massive fires, media reported, citing judicial sources
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2019) The Brazilian government will use part of the money that was returned to the state after corruption trials to protect the Amazon rainforest amid massive fires, media reported, citing judicial sources.The Supreme Court of Brazil runs a fund which received a part of the money returned after the corruption scandal involving the energy giant, Petrobras, the Efe news agency reported. The court ruled that 2.6 billion Brazilian reais (about $650 million) would be used to preserve the Amazonian rainforest.
According to local media, 1.6 billion Brazil reais will be allocated for the development of educational projects in the country, and the remaining one billion will be used to meet the needs of the Amazon region.
Wildfires in the Amazonian region have been raging for several weeks and became a point of concern for the international community. Environmentalists believe that this year's fires have been, to a significant extent, provoked by farmers, miners and loggers who allegedly set fires in an effort to unlock natural reserves.
Petrobras has been in a spate of corruption scandals since 2014, when it was revealed that businesses paid more than $2 billion in bribes to sign contracts with the oil company and obtain projects which later increased in cost. The scandal triggered a large-scale inquiry and public discontent.
