“No Oil Drilling in the Amazon.” During COP30 Activists Deliver Petition Under Giant Earth Globe, Urging Lula and IBAMA to Halt Petrobras’ Climate-Wrecking Plans
Eko community calls attention to new exploratory drilling greenlit at the mouth of the Amazon and urges environmental regulators to protect sensitive biomes.
Photos available for download, free to use with attribution to Virginie Squin for Ekō
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
On the ground contact: Alix Vanwaetermeulen, +4369010214921
For interview requests: Denise Robbins, denise@glasgowactions.com, +1 608-320-6582 (WhatsApp, Signal)
Belém, Brazil — Today, campaigners from Ekō and the Glasgow Actions Team gathered beneath the large Earth globe installation in Zone C of the Blue Zone for a high-visibility action demanding that President Lula reverse IBAMA’s recent approval of Petrobras exploratory drilling at the mouth of the Amazon River, and halt all new fossil fuel extraction in ecologically fragile areas. A recent poll commissioned by Ekō shows 61% of Brazilians oppose drilling in sensitive biomes.
Timed as COP30 discussions intensify, activists unfurled a striking massive banner, hoisted on retractable poles and suspended directly beneath the globe, sending a clear message: “No Oil Drilling in the Amazon.” Campaigners delivered an Ekō petition with approximately 60,000 signatures urging IBAMA to reject Petrobras’ application and deny future licenses for commercial production. In light of the recent decision, Ekō is calling on Lula to halt all new fossil fuel expansion in the Amazon and other sensitive biomes and channel true leadership by demonstrating at COP30 that Brazil's climate commitments are more than rhetoric.
The action coincides with mounting concern after Lula greenlit Petrobras’ exploratory drilling campaign—which has already begun and will last for five months—despite prior expert warnings that oil extraction in this region could be catastrophic for the Amazon’s ecosystems, Indigenous communities, and biodiversity.
Brazil’s environmental regulator IBAMA rejected Petrobras’ proposal last year after experts warned of unacceptable risks. But the licence has now been granted, and exploratory work has begun even as legal challenges move through the courts. Lula could deny Petrobras the right to move to commercial production, as well as refusing drilling licences to other oil companies.
"Lula is putting homes, waters and the survival of our planet at risk. An oil spill at the mouth of the Amazon would be a catastrophe, destroying fisheries, polluting the coastline and devastating Indigenous livelihoods,” said Rosa Volmer, Campaign Manager at Ekō. “Lula can't claim the mantle of global climate leadership and open up the Amazon to reckless oil companies."
Petrobras claims it has spill-response plans in place, but independent experts warn these plans are unworkable in the region’s conditions. Communities along the coast and in the Amazon River basin say drilling threatens fisheries, cultural survival, and ecosystems already stressed by fires, extraction, and political backsliding.
About Ekō:
Ekō is a community of people from around the world committed to curbing the growing power of corporations. We want to buy from, work for and invest in companies that respect the environment, treat their workers well and respect democracy. And we’re not afraid to hold them to account when they don’t. Learn more at www.eko.org/about/
About the Glasgow Actions Team:
Formed ahead of COP26, GAT pushes the world’s climate champions to go farther, calling out the blockers and exposing the deniers. Learn more at www.glasgowactions.com
Additional photos from the action and from previous Glasgow Actions Team actions below.
