A Brazilian environmental panel is drafting proposed revisions to the country’s forestry code to strike a compromise between the farm lobby, which hopes to clear more land for crops, and environmentalists, who want to improve protection of the Amazon rainforest. The National Environmental Council (Conama), comprising representatives of federal and state agencies as well as the nonprofit and business communities, plans to send the bill to Congress in March. A vote is expected by the end of June—if, that is, a compromise can be reached. Conama’s effort follows controversy over a bill introduced in December by legislators sympathetic to the farm lobby. The legislation, supported by the Agriculture Ministry, drew intense criticism from environmental groups on grounds it would open the Amazon to more... [Log in to read more]