Geospatial technology helps in the fight against environmental crimes in Brazil

Download the comprehensive case study here.

Click here to read this blog in Portuguese; and here to read it in Spanish

The size and complexity of the Brazilian territory, especially in the Amazon region, has historically plagued institutions, like the country’s Federal Police, with challenges around effective response to environmental crimes and illicit activities. To improve their operations, these agencies needed a remote sensing dataset that would complement their field work, allowing them to take timely action around environmental degradation in the region like illegal mining and deforestation, drug trafficking, and unauthorized fires. 

Enter: The Brasil MAIS Program. This project is one of the Ministry of Justice and Public Safety’s (MJSP) strategic initiatives and is the largest remote sensing operational project in Brazil. It grants all public agencies access to RedeMAIS (Brasil MAIS Program Network), an ecosystem for sharing data, information, and unique knowledge of the entire national territory which allows for more precise and effective action. Through this project, agencies are able to gain access to Planet’s daily satellite imagery and change-detection alerts from SCCON.

With the implementation of SCCON Platform alerts powered by Planet data, the Brazilian Federal Police has made great strides in preventing illicit activities in one of the most remote regions of the world. With this data, they have been able to reduce money laundering and corruption, protect and safeguard their community, and support Federal government decision making. Today, we’re pleased to share a few highlights from the program: 

• With its use of Planet satellite data and SCCON’s automated change detection, the project has collected over $ 1.9 billion / R$ 9.6 billion from fines, seized goods, and the freezing of assets since 2020.
• Over 3,300 public agents were mobilized in over 120 joint operations, using satellite imagery and data from the project.
• To date, over 270 institutions and 26,000 users have direct access to the data in one platform, including geoservices, dashboards and reports. This cohesion promotes broad participation and support for decision-making within the Federal Government.

Accessible from anywhere in the country, the Brasil MAIS Program is fostering greater collaboration across public agencies looking to enact lasting change in the region. Planet is proud to support this work with our partner in Brazil, SCCON. To read the full report, download our comprehensive case study here.