How investigative reporting led to a crackdown on illegal carbon credit schemes in Brazil

19 Feb 2025

In May 2024, Mongabay published an analysis that uncovered irregularities in two REDD+ carbon credit projects in the Brazilian Amazon that found that they may be connected to illegal timber laundering. Before the analysis, forest management plans had already been suspended in the areas over the same issue. The projects were managed by a high-profile carbon credit seller in Brazil, who had generated millions through sales to major corporations, including a South American airline, a global food and beverage giant, a multinational electronics firm, a leading music streaming platform, a major aerospace manufacturer, and a top professional services firm.

One of the seller’s partners in one of the projects was convicted of timber laundering six years ago, and their REDD+ projects were developed by a company known as the largest carbon credit provider in Brazil, and certified by Verra, of the world’s largest voluntary carbon market registries.

Logging in the Amacro region, the triple border between the Brazilian states Acre, Amazonas and Rondônia. This region has been subjected to intensive deforestation, illegal occupation of public lands, mining, deliberately set fires, and extensive logging. Image © Bruno Kelly/Greenpeace.
Logging in the Amacro region, the triple border between the Brazilian states Acre, Amazonas and Rondônia. This region has been subjected to intensive deforestation, illegal occupation of public lands, mining, deliberately set fires, and extensive logging. Image © Bruno Kelly/Greenpeace.

Impact

The ripple effects of the investigation were swift and tangible. Two weeks after the publication revealed that the carbon credit projects were located in areas used to launder illegal timber, the Brazilian Federal Police launched the “Greenwashing Operation” against the group named in Mongabay’s investigation. The Federal Police confirmed the findings and when Mongabay reporter Fernanda Wenzel spoke with the federal deputy in charge of the investigation, he said the story encouraged him and his team to continue their work, because it showed they were on the right track.

Following the police raid on the carbon projects, the value of two investment funds containing assets from the named company plummeted, as these were backed by credits generated by the projects, and Verra suspended the projects.

Then in August 2024, the Federal Public Ministry cited our reporting in an announcement that recommended suspension of all ongoing and future REDD+ and carbon credit projects on Indigenous and traditional territories in the state of Amazonas.

As of on Nov. 19, 2024, the Federal Public Ministry of the state filed a lawsuit against Amazonas state demanding the suspension of a set of REDD+ projects being developed on state lands. The lawsuit mentions Mongabay’s reporting three times.

This investigation into Brazil’s carbon credit schemes exposed systemic fraud and prompted action at multiple levels. The case illustrates the power of independent environmental journalism to drive accountability and inform better conservation practices. By shining a light on irregularities, Mongabay’s work continues to protect the Amazon and inspire greater scrutiny of global carbon markets.

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About Mongabay

Mongabay is a nonprofit environmental science and conservation news platform focused on providing original, reliable, and independent journalism from nature’s frontline. We pride ourselves on producing reporting that has substantial and tangible impacts around the world.

Banner image: Logging activity in the Brazilian state of Rondônia, with trees already tagged and waiting for transportation. Image courtesy of Vicente Sampaio/Imaflora.