Coral reef found in Amazon drilling area

Scientists aboard a Greenpeace ship have discovered that a massive coral reef near the mouth of the Amazon extends further than thought, overlapping areas where French company Total plans to drill for oil

AMAZON REEF: 1,000km long and covering 56,000 sq km – six times larger than earlier estimate

Area documented after discovery in 2016 – 9,500 sq km

OIL EXPLOITATION: Group including Total, Britain’s BP and Brazil’s Petrobras acquired rights to five exploration blocks in Amazon mouth basin in 2013

Some geologists say area could hold up to 14 billion barrels of oil – more than entire proven reserves in Gulf of Mexico

Greenpeace says newly found reef extension overlaps perimeter of Total’s oil blocks

Amazon Reef is unique biome that includes giant sponges and rhodoliths – calcareous algae that form habitat for reef creatures

It is also thought to contain dozens of undiscovered species

Environmentalists say it would be irreparably damaged if drilling for oil begins
125 miles
200km
Macapá
Amapá
Belém
São Luís
FRENCH
GUIANA
BRAZIL
Sedimentary basin
Amazon River mouth
Amazon River

Sources: Greenpeace, Science Advances, Total
Picture: Greenpeace
© GRAPHIC NEWS