At first glance, the debates involving the changes brought about by the New Forest Code may leave the false idea that legal innovations are limited to imposing environmental rules on the producer, seeking to preserve the biome, nothing more.
In fact, the Forest Code, currently represented by Law 12,651/2012, in addition to providing for the protection of native vegetation and hydrographic basins, instituted an important tool for economic and environmental planning and control, characterized by Rural Environmental Registry.
The Rural Environmental Registry is, therefore, a mandatory national registration for all rural properties, which allows the public authorities to control and manage the use of land use and occupation.
In the CAR, all environmental information on rural properties and possessions is compiled in the same system, with public access via the internet, forming a strategic database for monitoring and combating the deforestation of forests and other forms of native vegetation in Brazil, as well as for the environmental and economic planning of rural properties.
Its relevance made the Forest Code establish it as a legal framework, dedicating an entire chapter to the theme (Chapter VI), and its definition recorded in article 29 of Law No. 12,651/2012.
But what is the impact of the CAR or its non-realization for the rural producer?
It is widely recognized that the promotion of agribusiness is closely linked to access to rural credit and other production incentive programs.
It happens that the producer who does not register, that is, who does not register in the Rural Environmental Registry will lose access to credit, since the credit lines made available by financial institutions, link the release/approval of credit to the presentation of the CAR, as provided for in article 78 of the same Law 12,651/2012.
Thus, the registration of rural property in the CAR became a condition for granting rural credit by financial institutions and failure to comply with the terms by producers, according to limits established by law, may result in the restriction of credit lines available to the producer, causing an impact in the agribusiness production chain.
In order to make it possible to receive applications, the Brazilian Forest Service, an agency linked to the Ministry of the Environment, developed the system called SICAR Federal, which started receiving applications from rural properties as of September 2014.
Constant extensions of the deadline for the registration of rural properties in the system were granted by the Federal Government, seeking the massive adhesion of producers, as well as the benefits granted by the Forest Code to be achieved by all.
However, the last extension granted by the Federal Government was through Federal Decree No. 9,395 of 05/30/2018, changing the final date for registration of rural properties in the CAR until the date of 12/31/2018. Therefore, as of 01/01/2019, all areas should be duly registered at SICAR.
However, in several regions of the country, the data collected by the managers show that a significant number of producers did not provide the necessary registration.
Thus, the Brazilian Forestry System sent SICAR Communication no. 14/2018/GECAF/DCF/SFB to all CAR managers in the States communicating the end of the deadline for registering properties in the CAR on 12/31/2018.
Said communication also brought the alert regarding the extension of the deadline for adherence to the Environmental Regularization Programs – PRA, granted by Provisional Measure no. 867, of 12/26/2018, next step to the CAR.
It is important to clarify that MP 867/18 did NOT extend the date for registration of the CAR, but only to the PRA, enabling rural producers to adopt the necessary and planned measures by each of the States, to regularize environmental liabilities.
According to data from Brazilian Forest Service, only eighteen (18) states, in addition to the Distrito Federal, already have the module related to the Environmental Regularization Program – PRA: Acre, Bahia, Ceará, Goiás, Maranhão, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Pará, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Piauí, Paraná, Rio Grande do Norte, Rondônia, Roraima, Rio de Janeiro, Santa Catarina, and Sergipe.
In the State of São Paulo, the Environmental Regularization Program approved by State Law no. 15,684/2015, is suspended due to the injunction granted in ADIN TJ/SP no. 2100850-72.2016.8.26.0000.
However, and given the importance of agribusiness for the country’s economy, the greatest concern lies in the mandatory registration of rural properties in the CAR, especially after approval by the National Monetary Council, in an extraordinary session held on June 5, 2018, Resolution no. 4,663 published on 06/07/2018, which makes it mandatory for all financial institutions to require the CAR Receipt for granting rural credit as of 01/01/2109.
Therefore, the rural property registration measure in the CAR must be adopted urgently by all rural producers, under penalty of having their production compromised, due to the refusal to grant credit by financial institutions.
Available at: https://www.migalhas.com.br/depeso/318558/car-como-fomento-do-agronegocio
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