Cubatão residents seek denial of permit for Ilha do Tatu logistics complex

The Movement Against the Truck Parking Facility on Ilha do Tatu, in Cubatão, made up of residents and organizations, has asked São Paulo state environmental agency Cetesb to deny a preliminary environmental permit for the logistics complex. Condilog Operações is responsible for the planned development, which is designed to include a parking facility with more than 1,000 truck spaces.

One of the movement’s coordinators, Leandro Silva de Araújo, vice president of the Jardim Casqueiro Neighborhood Improvement Association (Someca), said the request was submitted to Cetesb after Condilog presented its Environmental Impact Study and Report (EIA-Rima) to obtain environmental approval. The group’s submission includes a detailed technical assessment of the site’s characteristics and potential environmental impacts.

Ilha do Tatu is a green area next to the road linking the Anchieta and Imigrantes highways. The 412,500-square-meter site, within the Port of Santos’ designated boundaries, was put out to bid in July 2024. The Santos Port Authority (APS) and Condilog signed a paid-use agreement for the site in January 2025. The agreement runs for 35 years, from January 13, 2025, to January 13, 2060.

Under the agreement, the company must deliver the truck parking facility within three years of signing, meaning by January 13, 2028. That obligation applies only if environmental approval is granted. “We believe a truck parking facility in an environmental preservation area surrounded by several neighborhoods would have a very negative impact on the community,” Araújo said.

The document the movement submitted to Cetesb lists concerns including the removal of native vegetation, air and water pollution, impacts on the mangrove ecosystem and worsening traffic congestion in the region. “The area that could be devastated is equivalent to approximately 50 soccer fields,” Araújo said.

Someca’s vice president added that the development could harm economic and environmental activities in the region, particularly artisanal fishing, nautical tourism and ecotourism.

The representative expressed concern about increased heavy vehicle traffic and its effects on regional roads. “Jardim Casqueiro residents have only one exit toward Santos, leading to the Anchieta highway, and end up stuck in traffic on the frontage road. We believe this development will worsen an existing problem,” he said.

According to Araújo, the Cubatão community also questions the criteria used in the EIA-Rima, particularly in the assessment of alternative locations. “When the Port of Santos first chooses the site, selects an operator and then conducts a study to identify alternative locations, that study, in my view, is already biased.”

Public meeting

Cubatão’s Municipal Environmental Council (Comdema), with support from the city government, will hold a public meeting to discuss the project on November 24 at 5 p.m. at City Hall.

In a statement, the Cubatão city government said Ilha do Tatu cannot legally accommodate a logistics facility, citing “the municipality’s master plan, which does not permit that activity in the area.”

The municipal administration also explained that “the site is a mangrove area important to the preservation and conservation of regional biodiversity, home to several bird species, particularly nesting ibises, including the scarlet ibis, the city’s symbol,” adding that “the mangrove is considered strategically important for climate regulation and is protected under the Atlantic Forest Law.”

The municipality also said that “Ilha do Tatu is located in an area surrounded by several residential communities, including Bolsões 7, 8 and 9, Ilha Caraguatá, Jardim Casqueiro and Vila dos Pescadores, with approximately 60,000 residents.”

The city government added that its Department of the Environment, Climate Security and Animal Welfare is aware that the São Paulo State Public Prosecutor’s Office, through its Special Environmental Protection Task Force (Gaema), opposes the project.

“The administration has been monitoring the administrative stages of the proceedings before Cetesb and will submit a legal response later if necessary.”

The city government also stressed that it has already offered an alternative site for the truck parking facility.

Responses

The Santos Port Authority (APS) said it is awaiting Cetesb’s decision on environmental approval for the logistics complex. “The development was the subject of a public call for proposals, won by Condilog, which is currently carrying out the procedures required to obtain an environmental permit from the competent agency. The project’s implementation will follow the stages and requirements established in the permitting process,” it said.

Cetesb, meanwhile, said the EIA-Rima for the Tatu Logistics Complex, filed on September 8, 2026, is undergoing technical review within the statutory deadline. “Cetesb clarifies that it has not formally received the residents’ movement’s objection to the development. A public hearing is planned, at which residents will be able to raise questions and submit comments that will be considered in the technical review.”

Source: A Tribuna 

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