How we do it

Research and Study

Sustainable growth and a commitment to the community are fundamental factors that allow a company to be successful and to build a great legacy.

That’s why we want to be a starting point for development in the region.

In order to identify the potential impacts from construction and operation of our Autazes project, an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) was concluded.

This report calls for over 30 plans and programs aimed at controlling, minimizing or compensating for possible impacts.

Additionally, free, prior and informed consultations following United Nations protocols were completed with native indigenous communities who live in the region close to the project, respecting their rights and culture.

Our Conduct

Ethics and Respect

"We have a Code of Conduct based on ethics and respect for people that must be followed by all employees. Our projects are guided by ESG criteria (Environmental, Social, and Governance) which advocate for actions that respect the environment, are socially just, and comply with Brazilian laws and company governance. Our main goal is to generate development for the communities around our projects and for the country, while respecting the environment and people."

President of Potássio do Brasil

Adriano Espeschit

Discover the details of the Plan

Involvement

We maintain open dialogue and are attentive to community needs. We prioritize hiring people and partners from the regions where we operate, aiming to reduce social impacts from the influx of people from other areas. We also conduct frequent consultations with local communities for suggestions and recommendations to improve the project. Brazil Potash is committed to sustainability regarding the environment. To this end, the company operates within the ESG criteria (Environmental, Social, and Governance). Our actions will always aim to carry out our activities with the least possible impact on the environment, in addition to minimizing and compensating for any potential consequences. We have 15 programs for the environmental area.

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Discover the details of the Plan

Involvement

We maintain open dialogue and are attentive to community needs. We prioritize hiring people and partners from the regions where we operate, aiming to reduce social impacts from the influx of people from other areas. We also conduct frequent consultations with local communities for suggestions and recommendations to improve the project. Brazil Potash is committed to sustainability regarding the environment. To this end, the company operates within the ESG criteria (Environmental, Social, and Governance). Our actions will always aim to carry out our activities with the least possible impact on the environment, in addition to minimizing and compensating for any potential consequences. We have 15 programs for the environmental area.

Click on the + icon to view more.

Community

Stakeholders mobilization and engagement plan

Potassio do Brasil

The goal is to ensure the integrated management of the socio-economic programs through the participation of the interested parties.

  • Create and constantly update a matrix of the enterprise’s stakeholders;
  • Construct and ensure a permanent participatory process for the parties in an effort to involve and include the communities directly affected, the government, other bodies and/or institutions and associations representing various groups with an interest in the project;
  • Undertake mobilization and engagement actions that are dimensioned to the risks and impacts associated with each stage of the enterprise;
  • Ensure the inclusion of social perspectives and needs within the scope of the environmental programs;
  • Strengthen the enterprise’s other environmental programs and social communication initiatives.
Social and environmental communication and information plan

Potassio do Brasil

This plan will keep the public and the communities informed about all the stages of the enterprise.

  • Divulge basic information on the project, its impacts and the control measures during all stages of the enterprise; Divulge the results of the socio-economic monitoring processes;
  • Publicize information on job creation and the necessary qualifications for filling these positions;
  • Establish formal complaint mechanisms for the communities located in the area surrounding the enterprise;
  • Divulge information aimed at valuing and sharing the historical and landscape heritage and patrimony in the locations near the enterprise and its importance to the local community; Support the other programs.

Potassio do Brasil

The goal of this program is to encourage actions designed to upgrade housing in the municipality in order to deal with the demand that will result from the increase in population and economic activity.

  • Support the process of upgrading the legal instruments that govern the land use and occupation policy in the municipality;
  • Support structural interventions aimed at establishing lots and housing units;
  • Assist the municipal government in their institutional contacts with the state and federal governments when requesting the implementation of policies for housing in the municipality, infrastructure, sanitation and transport links in areas of urban expansion;
  • Support the municipal government in the training of public agents for the licensing, control and inspection of construction and housing processes; Promote, encourage and attract private investment in the urban area of the municipality.
Strategic support program for readjusting the structure of public services

Potassio do Brasil

This program will stimulate and support public initiatives aimed at promoting, optimizing and expanding sanitation, security, healthcare and education services in the municipality of Autazes.

  • Support the conduction of studies and projects, as well as the installation of environmentally appropriate sanitation infrastructure;
  • Support the acquisition of equipment and facilities to improve policing throughout the municipality of Autazes;
  • Support teacher training initiatives, expansion of school facilities, introduction of technical and professionalization courses and qualification and development programs within the educational services offered in the municipalities;
  • Support initiatives aimed at the expansion of facilities, purchase of equipment and meeting sector demands that will effectively contribute to improvements in healthcare services.
Support program to strengthen and diversify the local economy

Potassio do Brasil

This program is aimed at the development of the existing economic activities in the municipality, thus ensuring autonomy in relation to the enterprise and promoting an increase in the competitiveness of the market and the resulting social benefits.

  • Identify, inventory and select, with the participation of local society, the economic activities that should be supported and encouraged;
  • Study, plan, propose and implement solutions for the various problems involved in these activities in the production, circulation and sale stages;
  • Assist with the design of productive local arrangements aimed at the particularities of the natural resources and the cultural and regional traits within the context of the Amazon region.
Supplier development programs

Potassio do Brasil

The goal of this program is to attract, stimulate and develop local companies, thus providing local and regional suppliers an equal opportunity to meet the demands of the project.

  • Register and qualify the local supplier base with the goal of meeting the demands of the project;
  • Prioritize the purchase of goods and services in the area of direct influence, thus helping to attract suppliers and favour those already established in the area;
  • Undertake actions aimed at promoting the development of the businessmen enrolled in the program;
  • Evaluate the results, after the intervention, together with the local suppliers.
Environmental education programs

Potassio do Brasil

This program is designed to raise awareness among the public of environmental issues, thereby motivating the public to conserve and improve the environment and integrating environmental management into the concept of corporate sustainability.

  • Develop educational actions that involve themes such as the sustainable use of natural resources, waste management, the prevention of forest fires, water pollution and other themes that are or could be directly linked to the day-to-day lives of communities, institutions and workers;
  • Take advantage of the experiences accumulated by local institutions in the handling of issues related to the themes dealt with through the program;
  • Develop a process for adoption of values, formation of concepts and acquisition of competences to motivate behaviour that defends, conserves and improves the environment, with the environmental legislation in force serving as a reference;
  • Develop an educational process, in strict harmony with the knowledge, references, practices, challenges and problems experienced by the communities involved during the course of their daily lives.
Manpower qualification program

Potassio do Brasil

It will establish mechanisms for the qualification of local labor, for potential use in the activities of the enterprise.

  • Publicize, through the Communication Plan, the qualifications, profile, and quantity of labor to be hired during the implementation and operation phases of the enterprise;
  • Identify and propose solutions and/or partnerships for obstacles to professional training, such as transportation, funding, availability of courses, etc.;
  • Establish partnerships with technical schools and other local and regional institutions to offer professional training courses.
Traffic safety and education program for the road connecting the plant to the port

Potassio do Brasil

The goal of the program is to ensure safe traffic conditions on the access roads to the enterprise.

  • Assess the current trafficability conditions of the access road to the enterprise;
  • Install warning and safety signage based on the results of the assessment;
  • Conduct traffic education workshops for the surrounding communities;
  • Inform and warn road users about the increase in heavy vehicle traffic and about the safety measures that should be taken to prevent accidents;
  • Systematically record accidents caused by the increased flow of vehicles.
Socio-economic indicator monitoring program

Potassio do Brasil

The program should monitor the socioeconomic aspects of the project area to understand the changes, the causes, and encourage positive factors or mitigate negative ones.

  • Define, based on the impact assessment presented in the Environmental Impact Report (RIMA), the indicators to be monitored in the direct influence area of the enterprise;
  • Conduct periodic monitoring of the selected indicators, identifying possible variations associated with the enterprise, using the initial socioeconomic and environmental diagnosis of the RIMA as a reference;
  • Based on the results of the monitoring, define actions and procedures that enhance positive effects and minimize negative effects.
Sex education program

Potassio do Brasil

The program aims to guide workers, contractors, and the population of Autazes to adopt safe sexual practices.

  • Educate the target audience about sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including modes of transmission and resulting problems, and encourage the adoption of preventive practices and behaviors;
  • Address the issue of pregnancy, with special emphasis on teenage and unwanted pregnancies, highlighting their consequences and contraceptive methods;
  • Support public health services in the policy of controlling sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies;
  • Guide workers and contractors to respect local communities.
Endemic prevention program

Potassio do Brasil

The program will monitor and control the spread of endemic diseases in the municipalities within the direct area of influence.

  • Define, based on the monitoring results, actions and procedures that allow for effective control of the targeted diseases.
Land acquisition program and family support

Potassio do Brasil

The program establishes transparent and fair mechanisms for land acquisition, ensuring that the relocation of families to other localities does not adversely affect their livelihoods.

  • Avoid and minimize adverse socioeconomic impacts resulting from land acquisition or restrictions on its use;
  • Transparent and fair mechanisms for purchasing properties;
  • Monitor and guide residents and workers of the properties that are acquired.
Ethno-environmental protection program

Potassio do Brasil

The goal of this program is to act in synergy with public agencies, promoting actions that address indigenous rights in their various aspects.

  • Ensure socio-environmental quality through actions in partnership with the public power that support the territorial protection of Indigenous Lands identified near the Project, as well as other localities occupied by indigenous peoples in the project’s area of influence, with emphasis on the rural nuclei of Urucurituba and Soares;
  • Respect the legitimate rights of indigenous populations over traditionally occupied lands;
  • Improve the living conditions of the Mura indigenous people in aspects of food security, health, education, and productive activities, according to their aspirations and the limits of competence of this Program;
  • Ensure that the benefits derived from other environmental programs of this study and other socio-environmental actions generated by the enterprise are enjoyed by the indigenous communities;
  • Contribute to the institutional strengthening of indigenous associations and their community members, enabling economic development alternatives that are compatible with their sociocultural vocation and sustainable use of natural resources;
  • Support projects and activities that respect the culture of indigenous peoples, contributing to the improvement of the sustainability conditions of their populations;
  • Support the structuring of FUNAI support and surveillance posts for assistance to the indigenous population and protection of their territories;
  • Finance environmental and anthropological studies that underpin processes of ethnodevelopment in Indigenous Lands;
  • Seek partnerships to finance actions and goals of the Ethno-environmental Protection Program.
Archaeological prospection and rescue program

Potassio do Brasil

The program will identify and characterize the archaeological heritage of the project region.

  • Conduct intensive surveys in archaeologically potential environmental compartments within the direct and indirect areas of influence, including surrounding areas likely to expand after the completion of the project;
  • Record, update, and precisely delineate sites in the area to be affected;
  • Quantify and qualify archaeological sites to provide an overall panorama, aiming for an archaeological rescue program if necessary, and register these sites in the National Registry of Archaeological Sites (CNSA);
  • Identify the existing cultural diversity in the area to be affected, in order to establish appropriate methodologies for treating each site according to its uniqueness;
  • Check the degree of conservation of archaeological sites with the goal of identifying cumulative impacts, future impacts, and possibilities and strategies for conservation, preservation, and/or enhancement;
  • The Prospection Program should result in a report that provides elements for the development of a possible archaeological rescue program, which should be based on criteria of scientific significance in the selection of potential threatened sites;
  • Implement a Heritage Education Program.
Heritage education program

Potassio do Brasil

Educational processes focused on the cultural heritage of the project area will aid in the recognition, appreciation, and preservation of this heritage.

  • Communicate to the local population the results of completed and ongoing archaeological and material heritage research, making the information produced by scientific research accessible and available near their places of residence;
  • Activities to enhance, revitalize, and preserve the archaeological and material heritage, preferably based on the cultural heritage currently recognized by these communities;
  • Make the research on cultural heritage publicly known, detailing its actions in each of the affected localities.

Environment

Environmental construction plan

Potassio do Brasil

The purpose of this plan is to minimize the environmental impacts resulting from the implementation of the project, ensuring the use of appropriate techniques for the construction of structures and the creation of environmental control systems.

  • Propose basic guidelines for the execution of construction works (construction techniques, environmental control systems, and accident prevention);
  • Manage environmental programs and create mechanisms for interaction among them. Evaluate the indicators of the environmental programs through the verification of activity execution, according to the schedule and the achievement of targets;
  • Ensure the rational use of electricity, water, and inputs during construction, as well as minimize soil movement and waste generation.
Program to control atmospheric emissions and monitor air quality

Potassio do Brasil

The program will monitor air quality to control atmospheric pollution in the village of Urucurituba and the community of Soares.

  • Plan soil movement and construction activities so that areas are exposed for the shortest possible time;
  • Capture dust emissions generated during the crushing processes and at ore transfer points during the project’s operational phase;
  • Moisten unpaved traffic roads frequently, with a strict regimen of twice a day, which can be adjusted depending on the level of dust and traffic intensity;
  • Sample atmospheric emission points;
  • Implement a maintenance plan for machinery and vehicles.
Noise control and monitoring program
 

Potassio do Brasil

The program aims to ensure that noise emission levels resulting from the project’s activities cause the least possible disturbance to the surrounding area.

  • Proper maintenance and tuning of machines and equipment;
  • Mandatory use of personal protective equipment (PPE) to ensure the health of employees working near noise sources;
  • Monitoring sound pressure levels as a means to measure the effectiveness of the control actions adopted, with the possibility of correction in case of non-compliance.
Erosion prevention, monitoring and control program

Potassio do Brasil

It proposes an erosion prevention system and a monitoring methodology for land control and stabilization.

The Erosion Prevention, Monitoring and Control Program is based on carrying out the activities of “Planning”, “Monitoring”, “Preventive Actions, Control and Rehabilitation of Instability Spots” and “Inspection, Evaluation and Conceptualization of Geotechnical Solutions”.

  • Planning: to enable the perception, evaluation and organization of the other activities, seeking proposals, results and solutions;
  • Monitoring: to monitor the fate of the deforestation material, land clearing and organic soil, to inspect drainage structures and devices (culverts, gutters, water outfalls, ditches, energy dissipators, etc.). Observe the evolution of the shape of the cut and embankment slopes and the recovery of the vegetation covered by the Degraded Areas Recovery Plan;
  • Preventive Actions to Control and Rehabilitate Instability Spots: construction and implementation of drainage devices on roads and accesses. Construction and containment in areas susceptible to the occurrence of unconsolidated materials. Implementation of drainage systems based on conveying rainwater through channels and carrying out interventions and inspections in areas of interference.
Water management program

Potassio do Brasil

It will indicate the appropriate management of water resources, taking into account the impacts identified in order to control and minimize them.

  • Periodically carrying out a water balance for the use of water in the project, taking into account all the operational stages from collection, supply, reservoir, treatment, distribution to the use of industrial and drinking water;
  • Establishment of procedures for minimizing the use of new water and maximum reuse of industrial water;
  • Proposing measures to minimize water use in the production process, port and offices;
  • Maintenance of the water collection, transportation, storage and distribution systems to ensure the expected efficiency.
Groundwater level monitoring program

Potassio do Brasil

It will monitor possible interference with groundwater levels, proposing control or minimization actions when necessary.

  • Monitoring water level fluctuations in aquifers and bodies of water in the area of direct influence;
  • Carrying out studies to control processes related to the development of the project.
Water quality management program

Potassio do Brasil

The objective of the program is to monitor the evolution of the quality of the water in the streams, rivers and lakes near the structures of the Autazes Potash Project.

  • Define and evaluate the water sampling network;
  • Adopt a standard procedure for sample collection, laboratory analysis and processing the results;
  • Carry out the planned monitoring campaigns;
  • Prepare and issue periodic reports indicating water quality and possible problems.
Solid waste management plan

Potassio do Brasil

The plan aims to reduce the generation of waste, separate it according to its characteristics and destination, seek reuse and/or reprocessing, and ensure adequate final disposal in order to minimize dissolution and manage the return of material to the subsoil.

  • Developing and implementing the management plan based on the applicable legal requirements established at federal, state and municipal level;
  • Provision of indicators to monitor the performance of the proposed actions, covering the management of the project’s domestic and industrial waste.
Flora recovery and reintroduction program

Potassio do BrasilResgatará parte das plantas da região para diminuir os impactos sobre a vegetação local.

  • Realizar na área de influência do Projeto Potássio Autazes, antes de qualquer supressão de vegetação, a coleta de sementes, mudas, frutos e indivíduos maduros das plantas de valor para o homem ou para os animais;
  • Produzir mudas para reflorestamento através das sementes coletadas;
  • Plantio de mudas e de indivíduos adultos resgatados nas áreas de reflorestamento.
Operational program for the suppression and use of forest resources

Potassio do BrasilVai indicar os procedimentos adequados nas atividades de supressão de vegetação, minimizando impactos sobre a flora e fauna.

  • Planejamento e estabelecimento dos métodos mais adequados para a realização da retirada de vegetação, incluindo o pedido das licenças necessárias ao órgão ambiental;
  • Isolamento, sinalização e medidas operacionais relevantes nas áreas alvo da supressão vegetal e seus entornos;
  • Fazer o treinamento das equipes de trabalhadores que farão a retirada da vegetação, de acordo com as maneiras corretas de trabalho;
  • Retirar as árvores que possuem madeiras comerciáveis e separá-las de forma adequada;
  • Coletar, caso necessário, as colmeias de abelhas, os ninhos de pássaros, as orquídeas e as bromélias;
  • Marcar a área de retirada da vegetação para evitar o corte de árvores que não precisam ser cortadas;
  • Fazer a supressão vegetal de maneira a evitar acidentes com os trabalhadores;
  • Aproveitar algumas partes das plantas, tais como galhos, folhas, frutos, sementes, para a recuperação de áreas degradadas.
Program to prevent and combat forest fires

Potassio do Brasil

It should prevent or control the occurrence of forest fires and their consequences for the project area.

  • Carry out publicity campaigns to prevent forest fires with employees and residents in the vicinity of the Autazes Potash Project;
  • Promoting courses for employees to form brigades to fight forest fires, to build and maintain firebreaks and to detect hotspots and issue alerts;
  • Carrying out annual educational campaigns, in partnership with the Town Hall and local institutions, with the aim of defining communication strategies to raise awareness among the population about the environmental and economic damage caused by fires and the importance of preventive action;
  • Among the monitoring actions, climatological assessment should be used, analyzing data generated by climatological stations and calculating the degree of risk of forest fires using appropriate techniques;
  • Implementing a system for recording and locating fire outbreaks using observation towers or patrols carried out by Forest Fire Fighting Groups.
Program to monitor plant suppression and fauna management

Potassio do Brasil

It aims to direct vegetation removal activities, reducing the impact on wildlife, through various actions.

  • Request authorization from environmental agencies to rescue bewildered or injured animals;
  • Employees responsible for vegetation removal should receive training on issues relating to the direction of removal, the importance of monitoring activities, first aid, how to deal with venomous animals and species that may be found on site;
  • Directing and monitoring the removal of vegetation, checking for the presence of animals and inducing them to flee to areas of natural vegetation in the surroundings;
  • Treating and disposing of animals that are found to be bewildered or injured during the process.
Wildlife roadkill prevention program

Potassio do Brasil

The program proposes control measures to prevent road kill on the roads and accesses that will be implemented by the Autazes Potash Project.

  • Monitor the roads;
  • Any animals that are run over should, whenever possible, be identified, photographed and the location of the record georeferenced;
  • Compile a database with the information recorded and identify possible patterns of road kill as a function of the landscape;
  • Adopt targeted control measures, such as installing traffic signs (educational signs and regulatory signs);
  • Carry out speed control at the points with the highest incidence of pedestrian accidents by installing speed reducers and sound detectors;
  • Install electronic monitoring devices in vehicles;
  • Promote campaigns to prevent wildlife being run over in the Environmental Education Program and among company employees.
Monitoring program for bioindicator fauna groups

Potassio do Brasil

It seeks to monitor the animal communities present in the Autazes Potash Project area to assess possible interference.

  • Request authorizations from the competent environmental agencies to carry out the monitoring;
  • Monitor, through sub-programs, the communities of amphibians and reptiles, birds, mammals and aquatic biota (algae, zooplankton and invertebrates that live at the bottom of bodies of water).
Vector insect monitoring and control program

Potassio do Brasil

The aim is to monitor insect vectors (disease-transmitting mosquitoes) and, if necessary, take action to control outbreaks and breeding sites.

  • Requesting authorizations from the competent environmental agencies to carry out studies with the insects;
  • Carry out sampling in the area where the Autazes Potash Project is located, as well as at sampling points with habitats favorable to the occurrence of mosquito populations, prioritizing local structures where there will be a greater concentration of labor;
  • Based on the data recorded in the field, the richness and abundance of the taxonomic groups sampled for each sampling point will be calculated. The values obtained should be compared to those recorded in previous campaigns in order to assess fluctuations in species populations;
  • If there is a significant increase in the populations of species of sanitary importance, or if the Public Health Program detects a significant increase in the number of people infected with vector-borne diseases, an Action Plan must be drawn up and implemented to control these species, which may include actions to eliminate collections of standing water, the application of larvicide (biological and killing), the use of insecticide and thermal spraying, among others.