A federal court in Brazil ordered a rancher to pay more than $50 million for destroying part of the Amazon rainforest. Additionally, the court froze the assets of Dirceu Kruger to pay for the damage he caused to the environment through illegal deforestation.
The civil case against Kruger was brought by Brazil’s attorney general’s office, representing the Brazilian institute of environment and renewable resources (Ibama). Previously, Kruger had been forced to pay damages by Ibama for destroying 5,600 hectares (13,838 acres) in the Amazon that was on public land belonging to the federal government and the state of Amazonas.
Last week’s ruling was the largest civil case brought for climate crimes in Brazil to date, and the start of a legal push to repair and deter damage to the rainforest.
Prosecutors argued the rancher used chainsaws to clear vegetation, then set fires to clear the land and finally planted grass to establish pasture for raising cattle. Satellite images showed the scale of the damage and Kruger admitted having caused it on film.
In the civil case, prosecutors argued that Kruger’s actions damaged the climate in two ways: burning vegetation directly emits greenhouse gases and removing plants means they can no longer draw carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
In determining the amount of the fine, the court relied on evidence introduced in court that damaging the rainforest emits an average of 161 tonnes of carbon per hectare, leading to a total of 901,600 tonnes of carbon released by Kruger’s actions. The court assessed the value of that damage at $65 per tonne, a number derived from averaging the social cost of carbon calculated by the US Environmental Protection Agency and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Money from Kruger’s fine will go to Brazil’s national climate emergency fund. Additionally, Kruger’s assets have been frozen and he is banned from receiving government finance or tax benefits. He is also forbidden from selling cattle and agricultural products or buying machinery such as chainsaws and tractors. Further, Kruger will have to restore the land he degraded so it can become a valuable carbon sink again.
