Judge Selina Kiyomi Toyoshima, of the Fourth Public Finance Court, ordered on Friday (28) that the Tenda construction company stop logging on Avenida Guilherme Dumont Villares, in Butanta, in the western region of São Paulo. Authorized by the Ricardo Nunes Administration (MDB), work began on Wednesday (26). The permit includes 384 trees on the site.
The judge’s initial decision came after a statement from Prosecutor Marcelo Ferreira de Souza Neto, of the Public Ministry in São Paulo, who was contacted by federal MPs Lucian Cavalcanti and state representatives Carlos Giannazzi and Councilor Celso Giannazzi, all from the PSOL party.
In her decision, the judge accepted the arguments of the necessity of protecting the environment and not reversing the cutting of trees.
The Attorney General explained, in his report, that the administrative process related to the works took place without the possibility of consulting the public, with indications of a violation of the principles of transparency, defense, and preservation of the municipality’s territory and natural resources.
According to a report from BoundThe administration of City Mayor Ricardo Nunes (MDB) and the construction company signed a TCA (Term Environmental Commitment) that mandates the felling of trees, including the 128 native trees.
The company is expected to build four towers there, each consisting of nine floors, and there will be more than 700 apartments with areas of 31 and 33 square meters, in the so-called Max Villa Sonya.
In return, the company must plant 221 seedlings of local species in the same area. According to the city council, replanting should only take place after completing the work that has not yet begun.
In addition, Tenda is expected to donate approximately R$ 2.5 million, equivalent to the price of 530 seedlings, to the Special Fund for Environment and Sustainable Development, linked to the Municipal Secretariat for the Green Environment.
Money could be used for the city to create sidewalk parks and improve green areas, such as parks.
When contacted about the start of the cuts, Tienda said the project for the Max Vila Sônia project had been duly approved by the city council, with regular processing with the Departments of Housing, Ecology and Ecology.
“It should also be noted that the approval process included compensation for trees through their planting in the project itself and with the Special Environmental Fund, as determined by municipal legislation,” the memo said.
Protests and controversy
The agreement was the target of residents’ protest due to the permission to cut trees. In Alto da Lapa, for example, a group calling itself Salve o Bosque protested against the Nunes administration’s approval for the construction company Tegra to remove 118 trees from the so-called Bosque dos Salesianos and build residential buildings.
The land was part of Unisal (Centro Universitário Salesiano de São Paulo), which sold it to the construction company in May 2024.
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