Brigada de Incêndio Florestal
Alter do Chão – Pará – Brazil
The Alter Brigade is a nonprofit civil society organization, founded in 2019, located in Alter do Chão, Santarém, Pará state, Borari territory. We work with integrated fire management actions, developing conservation strategies, mainly through fire use management and regulation, prevention, environmental education, and wildfire suppression.
Our area of operation and monitoring covers approximately 1,200,000 hectares, including the following protected areas:
- APA Alter do Chão – Alter do Chão Environmental Protection Area
- APA Aramanaí – Aramanaí Environmental Protection Area
- FLONA Tapajós – Tapajós National Forest
- RESEX Tapajós-Arapiuns – Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve
- Cobra Grande Indigenous Land
- Maró Indigenous Land
Our institutional mission is to strengthen forest brigades and reduce the incidence and intensity of wildfires in the Amazon.
We act through integrated fire management, mainly in environmental education and wildfire prevention and suppression, recognizing the socioeconomic and ecological role of fire, promoting a better human relationship with the environment, and raising awareness of climate change, its causes, and consequences.
We seek to achieve our mission through integrated action with public and private agents, traditional communities, Indigenous peoples, and Brazilian society at large.
We are co-founders of the National Network of Volunteer Brigades (RNBV), the Lower Tapajós Brigade Network (RBBT), and we are part of the organizations within the Climate Observatory. We hold a seat on COMIF, the body responsible for implementing the National Integrated Fire Management Policy (Law No. 14,944/2024), as one of the RNBV representatives.
We are on the front lines of the fight against climate change!
WHAT WE DO
WE PREVENT
We believe fire is part of the way of life of many traditional Amazonian populations. Therefore, we respect and value its cultural, agricultural, and symbolic use. At the same time, we understand that the climate crisis imposes urgent challenges on fire as an ancestral tool. We promote respect for the traditional and adaptive use of fire, supporting best burning practices, without losing sight of the ancestral knowledge that shapes territorial relations, and encouraging a gradual substitution of fire use when possible.
WE STUDY AND TRAIN
We are a hub for training and capacity-building of brigades, working both in Alter do Chão and across other territories in the Amazon and Brazil. We offer courses, workshops, and immersive experiences on Integrated Fire Management, fire behavior, monitoring technologies, and geolocation tools, always integrating scientific knowledge with traditional wisdom. Our work focuses on training forest brigades rooted in traditional communities, respecting local empirical knowledge while qualifying action through technical, scientific, and territory-sensitive expertise.
WE MONITOR AND CLASSIFY FIRE
We are a reference in monitoring fire hotspots and validating fire alerts. When an alert arrives, our team acts quickly to determine whether it is a fire connected to a traditional practice or a wildfire requiring immediate response. In the case of wildfires, we mobilize public authorities and community and volunteer brigades to contain the spread and mitigate damage as quickly as possible.
WE RESPOND
We are prepared to provide the first response to wildfires, establish the Incident Command System (ICS), hand over command to the competent public agencies, and remain integrated in extended firefighting operations. We act strategically by analyzing wildfire behavior, prioritizing brigadier safety and response efficiency. Our focus is protecting lives, forests, and territories—acting with agility, technical expertise, and dialogue with local stakeholders.
WE ARTICULATE AND ADVOCATE
The Alter do Chão Brigade is a member of the National Network of Volunteer Brigades (RNBV) and the Climate Observatory, and participates actively in the National Committee for Integrated Fire Management, contributing directly to the national implementation of the PNMIF. We work to strengthen volunteer and community brigades, fostering integration, standardization, and recognition of these groups as essential to regulating fire use in Brazil. We take part in congresses, conferences, and decision-making spaces, bringing hands-on experience with integrated fire management to influence public policy and transform realities.
PROJECTS and PARTNERS
Focused on restructuring the brigade base, covering infrastructure renovation, equipment acquisition, life insurance for forest brigadiers, and specialized accounting support.
Emergency support for rapid wildfire response actions, along with donation of high-performance firefighting equipment internationally recognized as best practice. These resources significantly strengthen the brigade’s technical and operational capacity in the field, increasing the efficiency and safety of fire control and suppression efforts.
These resources significantly strengthen the brigade’s technical and operational capacity in the field, increasing the efficiency and safety of fire control and suppression actions.
Ongoing specialized training for wildfire analysts, promoted by Spain’s Pau Costa Foundation.
Training is structured in two phases and deeply explores fire ecology, fire behavior, emergency management, and integrated fire management strategies—developing technical and strategic competencies for action in diverse socio-environmental contexts.
In 2023, we received support for the purchase of a 4×4 quad bike essential for firefighting in difficult-to-access terrain. In 2025, we assisted the Anã Brigade with grant writing and reporting so they could acquire their own 4×4 quad bike. Also in 2025, WWF supported the renovation of the Lower Tapajós Brigade Network (RBBT) Base.
The project included a new roof, electrical system, painting and wall repairs, and wastewater system upgrades. Equipment and supplies were also purchased to accommodate RBBT brigadiers during operations.
We supported workshops for the Proof of Concept project linked to the Regulation of the Federal Volunteering Strategy for Integrated Fire Management.
Through support from the Pantera platform of the company Um Grau e Meio, we access a private satellite system that monitors fires and heat spots. We receive daily instant alerts across our area of operation.
In partnership with ICMBio, the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve, Projeto Saúde e Alegria, communities, and brigades, we carried out a 15-day boat expedition along the Tapajós and Arapiuns Rivers, working on environmental education, fire-use regulation, and wildfire suppression.
Workshops were held in 35 communities with 1,030 participants, including 510 women and 410 Indigenous people from 6 ethnic groups. Activities included 29 environmental education workshops, 6 IFM Plan workshops, basic drone monitoring training, quad bike operation training, and field geoprocessing practice. During the expedition, we also fought wildfires for 5 days.
Through the Proof of Concept for Volunteering in Integrated Fire Management, and in collaboration with ICMBio, communities, and villages of the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve and partner brigades, we co-created the Lower Tapajós Brigade Network during the 2024 Preventing with IFM operation.
The network includes 7 brigades: Alter do Chão Forest Fire Brigade, Esquadrão Combate Ativo Brigade (Anã), Guardians of the Land Brigade (Maripá), Kumaruara Guardians Brigade, Nova Vista Brigade, Murucututu Indigenous Brigade (Encantado Territory), and Escrivão Brigade.
We receive mentorship from the company Quintessa to support institutional organization and accelerate processes and projects developed by the Alter Brigade.
Support was used mainly to purchase Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) designed for firefighting, following international safety and resistance standards, ensuring brigadier safety during operations.
We participate in the Fire Knowledge Boat Project, a river expedition bringing environmental education workshops on fire use and management to riverside and traditional communities.
The activities involve residents of all ages—teachers, farmers, and children—promoting knowledge exchange between brigades and strengthening local wisdom to meet the challenges of climate change.
PARTNERS
IN THE MEDIA
Brigada de Incêndio Florestal © 2025
Alter do Chão, Pará, Brasil
CNPJ: 33.384.451/0001-29
Amazônia Viva!