Two slaughterhouses in Brazil have been heavily fined by a judge in Rondônia, Brazil for trading cattle raised in a protected area of the Amazon rainforest, an act considered illegal in the Brazilian Amazon.
The two slaughterhouses, along with three cattle ranchers, have to pay a total of $764,000 for causing environmental damage, according to the court’s decision.
"When a slaughterhouse, whether by negligence or intent, buys and resells products from invaded and illegally deforested reserves, it is clear that it is directly benefiting from these illegal activities," the plaintiffs' complaint states. "In such cases, there is an undeniable connection between the company's actions and the environmental damage caused by the illegal exploitation."
Brazilian law forbids commercial cattle inside a protected area. Despite that, cattle up to the number 210,000 are being grazed inside Jaci-Parana, according to the state animal division.
The fact is that cattle raising drives Amazon deforestation. And with almost 80% of its forest destroyed, it ranks as the most ravaged conservation unit in the Brazilian Amazon. A court filing pegs damages in the reserve at some $1 billion.
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