Brazilian president announces dredging operations in Amazon

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva visited Manaus yesterday to announce measures to mitigate the drought in the Amazon region.

The announcement includes the public bidding processes for four maintenance dredging operations in the Amazon and Solimões rivers.

Over five years, a total of BRL 500 million (approximately USD 88.27 million) will be invested to ensure navigability and to maintain the flow of supplies, mitigating the impact of the severe drought affecting the region.

These operations are part of the Federal Government’s efforts to address the worst drought the Amazon has experienced in 45 years.

The maintenance dredging and nautical signaling works will occur in four sections of the Amazon River: Manaus-Itacoatiara; Coari-Codajás, Benjamin Constant-Tabatinga, and Benjamin Constant-São Paulo de Olivença.

The dredging will be carried out in specific areas, known as critical points—locations where sediment has accumulated, and not along the entire riverbed. In compliance with environmental licensing, the removed sediment is to be deposited at another location in the river, outside the navigation channel.