# Early Perspectives on the Planned Brazilian Program to Address Ship-Sourced Pollution
## 1 Introduction  
In late August 2019, Brazil experienced one of the most extensive oil spill events to ever impact its coastal environment. Over the course of several months, vast quantities of tar balls reached more than 3000 km of shoreline, affecting eleven states along the Equatorial and Atlantic boards. The event was marked by a unique characteristic: the absence of an identified source in the immediate aftermath. No maritime accidents were reported, and the oil appeared suddenly and persistently, contaminating beaches, mangroves, and marine ecosystems. This \"Mysterious\" oil spill incident underscored the vulnerability of Brazil's jurisdictional waters [1, 2, 3]. This environmental disaster prompted a wide mobilization effort involving local communities, governmental agencies, and independent researchers. The response was hampered by delayed detection, lack of predictive tools, and limited preparedness for an event of such spatial scale and uncertain origin. The incident underscored critical gaps in national oil spill monitoring frameworks and raised broader questions about the surveillance and governance of maritime traffic in Brazilian jurisdictional waters [1, 2, 3]. The institutional response to the oil spill was widely regarded as delayed and poorly coordinated. In the critical weeks following the first reports of contamination along thecoast, the absence of clear leadership and the slow mobilization of federal resources revealed the vulnerability of Brazil's governmental structure in dealing with large-scale environmental emergencies. Small-scale fishers and traditional populations were particularly affected, facing significant economic losses and health risks without immediate governmental support or protective policies [4; 5; 6]. In the face of this partial state inaction, civil society took the lead in the initial containment and cleanup efforts. Thousands of volunteers spontaneously organized beach cleanups, often without proper equipment or protective gear. Universities, NGOs, and local collectives contributed by providing technical analyses, mapping efforts, and logistical support. This combination of institutional fragility and civic resilience highlighted the urgent need to strengthen Brazil's preparedness and response mechanisms for environmental disasters. As a direct consequence of the lessons learned from the 2019 event, new initiatives emerged to develop integrated systems for the forecasting, monitoring, and response to marine oil spills. These ongoing efforts aim to enhance marine environmental governance and reduce the impact of future accidents within Brazilian jurisdictional waters [7; 8; 9]. Since the 2019 \"Mysterious\" oil spill, at least two more significant pollution incidents caused by ships have been recorded in ecological sanctuaries along the Ceara coast and within the Fernando de Noronha archipelago [10; 11; 12]. Moreover, large-scale probabilistic modeling estimated that up to 30% of ships on route through the South Atlantic may be exploiting the lack of international surveillance to dump waste and oil close to BJW [13; 14]. Brazil's history of oil spills shows a significant reduction in accidents following the implementation of a new environmental protection legislation on 28 April 2000. However, the number of intentional spills (dumping) has increased over the last 5 years, highlighting the need for a more effective oil spill monitoring and response system [1]. In response, the investment in a new program for oil spill monitoring and modeling (SisMOM: Sistema Multiusuario de detecao, previsao e monitoramento de derrame de Oleo no Mar; i.e., Multi-user System for Offshore Oil Spill Detection, Forecast, and Monitoring) marks a pivotal development in safeguarding Brazil's coastline against oil pollution [15; 16]. SisMOM is the integrated, multi-user monitoring system for BJW, which utilizes space technologies, autonomous vehicles, moored buoys, atmospheric and oceanic models, and artificial intelligence techniques.