Clay mining in the slopes of Serra Geral puts an extra danger in the endangered Crested Eagles in Santa Catarina

This beautiful landscape is now facing degradation by logging, mining and fire wood afairs.

Forest clearing for fire wood and charcoal are rapidly destroying the last habitats of Crested Eagles in Serra Geral slopes, Santa Catarina

The rare and elusive Crested Eagle (Morphnus guianensis) can still be seen in Santa Catarina’s Serra Geral. But its days in the region are counting down. While in some sectors of the area the Brazilian Atlantic Rain Forest is burned and transformed into charcoal to fuel ceramic industry in south Santa Catarina, in a nearby area a phosphate mining enterprise leaded by BUNGE and YARA food and fertilizer international groups are struggling to get an environmental license to trigger their project.

Mining operation are increasing in the slopes of Serra Geral. Clay mining is now increasing the soil exposition into large craters putting the area in risk of landsliding and erosion. The area now explored by clay mining is the same explored for charcoal in Aiure and Santa Rosa de LIma, near Anitapolis. These areas are considered some of the most risky for mining operations because landsliding and erosion.

The habitat of Crested Eagles are decreasing fastly without any Brazilian Law intervention. Recently we won a legal battle against Bunge and Yara phosphate mining project stopping the licencing process. They will appeal to the court, but it was a significant victory of Montanha Viva efforts against this attempt in destroying the headwaters of Braço do Norte River and a wide use of firewood in the phosphate processing.

If mining projects continue to be licenced, Santa Catarina will loose and deteriorate some of the most beautiful landscape in south Brazil. The Crested Eagle face will local extintion if no attempt to conserve such rare eagle in south Brazil will be set.