Since developers of the 2016 Olympic golf course and Brazilian state prosecutors cannot come to a compromise solution on how to balance the construction of the course with the country's environmental laws, prosecutors filed Wednesday for construction to come to a complete halt.
In a 27-page filing, the Associated Press reports, prosecutors ask for a construction injunction and label "laughable" plans put forth by the Rio de Janeiro government and land developer to modify the Gil Hanse design to build the course in accordance with laws protecting marshland and animal habitats. The course is estimated to be 70 percent done.
Prosecutors go so far as to claim that the land in question is more important than completing a venue for golf to return to the Olympic program after a 112-year absence.
"Even the eventual possibility of not fulfilling the deals and contracts with the Olympic committee must not supersede the need to preserve the environment," the legal brief said. "Breaking the contracts will only bring about eventual fines while the environmental damage, through the destruction of an important ecosystem, will never be repaired."
The case, pitting national lawyers against a city government eager to move forward in developing their Olympic infrastructure, has dragged on in court with an indecisive judge that has pleaded with both sides to come to a compromise. It appears prosecutors will not agree to anything less than the changes they demand.
Construction will continue while this motion awaits a ruling.
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