The provisional measure (MP) 1,308, in effect since Friday and dealing with special licensing for strategic projects, is the discordant note in the view of Suely Araújo, former president of environmental regulator IBAMA, who has followed licensing debates for over 30 years. “But there are many positive points in the text, and the vetoes were significant,” she says.

The big question now is how Congress will react — to the vetoes, the provisional measure, and the government’s new bill.

The coming days will demand an enormous political effort from the administration to persuade lawmakers, who could once again jeopardize everything — climate and biodiversity, traditional peoples and urban populations. The stakes also include economic damage, the potential collapse of the EU–Mercosur trade deal, threats to food production, rising prices, and inflation.

It was no coincidence that Executive Secretary of the Office of Chief of Staff Miriam Belchior, during the press conference announcing the presidential vetoes, stressed that this is “a government project, not a ministry project.” She noted that President Lula devoted five hours of his time to reviewing the vetoes.

“The government cared about the issue — and that is an important signal,” says Marcio Astrini, executive secretary of Observatório do Clima, the largest network of environmental organizations and social movements concerned with climate and the environment. “The government looked at licensing in a way it hadn’t during the entire congressional process.”

63 Provisions Vetoed

The version approved by the House had 66 articles and 398 provisions. The president vetoed 63 of those provisions — 16% of the total, a high percentage. Of those, 26 were completely struck from the law, including the provision that weakened special protections for the Atlantic Forest and another that limited the requirement for consultation with Funai and the Palmares Foundation in projects affecting Indigenous and quilombola communities. Mr. Lula axed these controversial measures entirely.

The other 37 vetoes came with alternative wording. The government used two instruments: the provisional measure on the Special Environmental License (LAE) and a bill with urgent status, which means Congress must review it quickly. After 45 days without a vote, it would block the legislative agenda. The new licensing law will take effect in 180 days.

The technical and legal review to prepare the vetoes and the alternative wording was meticulous. Both Ms. Belchior and Environment Minister Marina Silva emphasized that the text preserves the integrity of the licensing process, protects Indigenous and quilombola rights, ensures legal certainty, and incorporates innovations to make licensing faster — a recognition of some positive aspects of the bill that had passed Congress.

The government’s bill revised the License by Adhesion and Commitment (LAC), restricting it to low-impact projects only. As passed by the House, the LAC could have allowed high-risk projects — such as the dams in the Mariana and Brumadinho disasters — to be self-licensed by developers, with only random inspections by environmental agencies. “This was the biggest problem on the list,” says Ms. Araújo. “It would have been like pressing a button and having the license printed instantly.”

Another key change was the veto of provisions that would have allowed states and municipalities, without standardization, to set their own licensing criteria, such as project size and pollution potential. This would have encouraged an anti-environmental “race to the bottom” between states. The government also vetoed the article that would have stripped conservation agencies’ opinions of binding authority in projects affecting protected areas.

The government did not challenge agribusiness — nor was it expected to. Licensing exemptions for crop cultivation remain, except for medium- and large-scale intensive livestock operations. “A 20,000-hectare soybean or eucalyptus plantation is exempt,” notes Ms. Araújo, who also coordinates public policy at Observatório do Clima.

The “Alcolumbre Amendment”

In Ms. Araújo’s view, the sticking point is the provisional measure, which in practice modifies what became known as the “Alcolumbre Amendment,” named after Senate president Davi Alcolumbre (Brazil Union of Amapá). In May, he proposed the Special Environmental License (LAE) for projects deemed strategic by the government’s council, with a 12-month deadline for the process and a single-phase procedure — skipping the usual preliminary, installation, and operating licenses.

The reference to single-phase licensing was removed from the Executive’s version — a sign of internal negotiation, since infrastructure-linked ministries supported the original congressional text. “The LAE was a concession to Senator Alcolumbre, and the wording, even with the change, is still poor,” Ms. Araújo says. “In practice, it doesn’t include all three phases common to large hydro, road, or mining projects. The text says there may be stages, but only one license is issued — the LAE,” she stresses. “It’s still single-phase because it’s just one license.”

“In reality, this created a simplified license with a one-year deadline. That’s impossible — you can’t complete all the studies or have a project fully matured in that time,” she says. “In practice, the LAE remains the fast track that Senator Alcolumbre envisioned. In my view, the LAE shouldn’t exist at all. What could exist is a provision allowing the Government Council to list priority projects for review. Ibama already prioritizes projects flagged by the Civil House, whether or not they’re in the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC). But the government is now streamlining exactly the kinds of projects with major environmental impacts. This will trigger lawsuits. The provisional measure was the bargaining chip with Congress.”

At the press conference, the government sought to preempt criticism. “The LAE is an important innovation from Congress, and the government believes it should be preserved because it identifies strategic projects,” said Marcos Rogério de Souza, Special Legal Secretary at the Office of Chief of Staff. He insisted the licensing would not be single-phase. “And the 12 months are for completing the licensing process — it doesn’t mean the answer will be ‘yes,’” added Environment Minister Marina Silva.