The Amazon reef that may be threatened by oil drilling

Scientists accidental a unsocial reef situation adjacent the rima of the Amazon stream is nether menace from plans to drill for oil. The reef was discovered successful 2016, and researchers accidental it could incorporate galore chartless taxon of medicinal oregon technological value.

The Amazon reef is antithetic due to the fact that it lies successful heavy water, and is sometimes hidden by the muddy waters flowing into the oversea from the world's largest river.

Its extent - up to 220m (725ft) and the beardown currents successful the country mean that it has been small studied since it was discovered.

"It's a precise wide area, determination are things that we don't cognize yet," says César Cordeiro, a prof astatine the Center for Biosciences and Biotechnology astatine the University of Northern Rio de Janeiro.

"There are taxon that whitethorn beryllium appearing lone successful that country and obscurity other successful the world."

One is simply a sponge presently being studied astatine the University of São Paulo, which has shown signs of possessing anti-cancer properties.

"There is large imaginable for economical summation with the survey and extortion of these systems," says Rodrigo Leão de Moura, prof astatine the Institute of Biology astatine the University of Rio de Janeiro and the starring idiosyncratic progressive successful the reef's discovery.

"Of course, we person this contiguous request for inexpensive energy, but however overmuch does this sacrifice a aboriginal based connected biotechnology?"

The scientists interest that plans by the Brazilian lipid institution Petrobras to drill for lipid adjacent to the reef could origin an lipid leak that would devastate the ecosystem.

Petrobras is readying this period to transportation retired a trial to larn much astir however lipid would beryllium dispersed successful the lawsuit of a leak.

If that satisfies Brazil's biology extortion agency, Ibama, exploration wells could travel soon afterwards, 160km (100 miles)from the shore, but overmuch person to the reef.

Brazilian Environment Minister Joaquim Leite - a subordinate of the outgoing authorities appointed by President Jair Bolsonaro - has said it is imaginable to research for lipid determination and support the environment, but Prof Moura has doubts.

"This country has 1 of the strongest currents connected the satellite and a tidal scope that tin beryllium greater than 10m (33ft). These are biology conditions that situation immoderate engineering work, making it precise risky," helium says.

Many reefs hap successful shallow water, wherever the prima provides abundant vigor for corals to grow.

This 1 is different. It is deeper and gloomier, and is chiefly composed of hard reddish algae susceptible of carrying retired photosynthesis - the process by which plants crook sunlight, h2o and CO2 into carbohydrates and oxygen - successful low-light conditions.

"They are reddish algae that usage airy successful a much filtered mode - they usage the bluish spectrum of light," says Prof Moura.

The algae are hard due to the fact that they incorporate a chalk-like substance successful their compartment walls, and this allows ample coagulated structures to turn implicit time.

The reef is thought to screen an country of 56,000 sq km (22,000 sq miles) and to structure galore antithetic sponges, immoderate corals, and astatine slightest 70 taxon of fish, shrimp, and lobster. These successful crook supply a root of nutrient and income for thousands of families connected the Brazilian coast, immoderate of whom are besides acrophobic astir Petrobras's plans.

Fisherwoman Darcirene Garcia worries that the disturbance created by the lipid company's ships volition thrust food away: "They volition spell further out, and successful our tiny boats we volition not beryllium capable to spell aft them."

An lipid spill that deed the seashore of bluish Brazil successful 2019 besides casts a agelong shadow. Tons of heavy achromatic crude began washing up astatine a 1000 locations, and brought the tourism manufacture to a halt. Overnight the biggest marketplace for locally caught food disappeared. Other buyers stopped buying too, for fearfulness of contamination, truthful income fell by 80% oregon 90% says Carlos Pinto, of the seaworkers' union, Confrem.

Darcirene Garcia took portion successful a gathering with Petrobras connected 8 November, on with different members of the sportfishing assemblage successful Brazil's astir northerly town, Oiapoque.

"It seemed to beryllium ready-made answers," she says. "Whatever we asked, their reply was always: 'It is excessively acold from the coast.' At the extremity of the meeting, the fishermen shouted together, saying that they were against the drilling, but they didn't accidental anything."

Petrobras says it is holding meetings with communities that could beryllium affected by the project, successful bid to "clarify doubts and expectations".

Oil discoveries on the seashore of countries to the north-east - Suriname and Guyana - person heightened expectations of important lipid reserves disconnected the Brazilian coast.

Petrobras signalled connected 1 December that Brazil's bluish seashore would beryllium a precedence implicit the adjacent 5 years, attracting fractional of the company's $6bn exploration fund implicit this period. But it is chartless whether the incoming authorities of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva volition backmost the program to drill adjacent the reef.

His party's spokesperson connected the situation has indicated her opposition, but the past clip Lula was successful authorities helium relied connected the gross from lipid finds successful the Santos Basin southbound of Rio de Janeiro to money societal programmes.

Professors Rodrigo Moura and César Cordeiro spot the reef's biodiversity arsenic 1 of its main benefits, but besides constituent retired others.

One is that it provides a much sustainable root of income than galore different section industries.

"If radical cannot fish, they volition person to find different root of income, and what is determination successful the Amazon to do?" Prof Moura asks. "Hunting, deforestation, opening of pastures, migration to wood areas?"

Another is that it operates arsenic a c sink.

The hard compartment walls of the algae incorporate calcium carbonate, Prof Cordeiro points out, frankincense helping to region c from the ambiance for an indefinite period.