The Environmental Guard has ten agents who work in shifts and serve the municipality 24 hours a day, Monday to Monday – Photo: Disclosure

Florianópolis’s environmental public safety arm, the Municipal Environmental Guard, has already experienced at least 500 incidents since it began operating in the capital four months ago.

These actions, explains Ecological Guard Deputy Commander Carlos Freibeguer Fernandez, range from suppressing vegetation in uneven areas to rescuing wild animals or animals hit on public roads.

The environmental services began on June 21 this year with the opening of an operational base in the botanical garden in the Itakorubi area. Photo: disclosure.

Environmental protection services began on June 21 this year with the opening of an operational base in the Botanical Garden in the Itakorubi area. Specialized assistance is provided with the support of the Environment Fund, SMDU (Obras), the Department of Social Assistance and Dibea – Animal Welfare Directorate. In addition to saving domestic and wild animals and suppressing vegetation, police and preventive work is also carried out in squares and parks, at roadblocks and barriers.

Fernandez emphasizes positive outcomes for the corporation, the public and the environment. “For example, we are actively engaged in saving wild animals. Last month we rescued an aracua in Rio Vermelho, whose case attracted a lot of attention. We are also in the breeding season of possums, so there are also many reports of incidents involving possum pups entering schools in various areas of the city. We also rescued a coral snake as well as affected pets, especially dogs,” he says.

The second-in-command explains that this branch of the corporation provides emergency first aid and delivers animals to a treatment center organized by Florianopolis City Hall. “We also monitored alligators in the Itacorubí region and also carried out a very important action in support of the Port Authority, which was the collection of garbage in the Barra da Lagoa canal, where we cleaned up more than a ton of waste. We also supported the initiatives of the municipal secretariat for the environment and followed the activities of Floram – Fundação do Meio Ambiente in the regions where the agency operates,” he explains.

The most common requirements are the rescue of wild and/or downed animals on public roads – Photo: Disclosure

Florianopolis Minister of Security Araujo Gomes adds that the guard is stepping up its work on environmental inspection. “The municipal guard is increasingly looking for solutions to specific problems within the city. The need for an environmental protection agency linked to public safety was recognized and we worked to implement it. Today, the goal is to be closer and closer and meet all these needs of the people of Florianopolis every day,” he comments.

The Importance of Specialized Service

“It is very important that we have these teams ready to provide qualified technical support, since the environmental field requires a lot of knowledge and is in great demand due to the large area of ​​green space that needs to be preserved in the capital,” Fernandes emphasizes.

Today, the Environmental Guard employs ten agents who work in shifts and serve the municipality 24 hours a day, Monday through Monday. The most common claims are the rescue of wild and/or downed animals on public roads, as well as complaints related to intrusions and construction in protected areas.

The Florianopolis Municipal Guard has 184 guards and handles an average of 5,000 cases per month – Photo: Disclosure

Residents of Florianopolis have two communication channels to contact GMF Ambiental: telephone 153 and email [email protected]. “Municipal security, as well as environmental protection, is available to society,” recalls Carlos Freibeger Fernandez.

What to do when meeting a wild animal

The deputy commander of the guard also instructs the population on how to act in the event of a meeting with a wild animal. “In these cases, when you don’t know how to handle an animal, it would be right to leave it isolated from the general environment, if you have a dog at home, for example, in order to avoid conflict, and then call the guards. so that we can participate in the occurrence and solve the problem. We are always ready to provide this assistance,” concludes Fernandes.

In total, the Florianópolis Municipal Guard employs 184 guards and processes an average of 5,000 cases per month.