To mark the Safety on the Pipeline Easement Day four years ago we created the Dial 168 Day on August 16.  The date promotes the 168 number, a direct channel to the population for receiving information on non-authorized activities on pipelines.

This year there is one more fact to celebrate: the reduction of thefts on the pipelines operated by the company in Brazil. In the first semester, there were 66 incidents, 43% lower than the 116 cases recorded last year. Collaboration by the population and partnership with public agencies were essential to attaining these results.

In search of a increasing engagement with the residents surrounding the easement strips, we have undertaken a series of simultaneous actions in various communities. The most important is 168 in Colors, consisting of painting of graphite panels on 18 walls in 17 localities where Transpetro operates – 13 in the State of São Paulo and 4 in the State of Rio de Janeiro. All painted by local artists based on drawings related to the theme. In this manner we use the transformative power of art in order to have a dialog with the surrounding residents, promoting awareness of the risks that theft attempts may present.

With the social distancing scenario imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, a large portion of the relationship activities of Dial 168 Day will occur by digital means.  WhatsApp messages are planned for the residents of the communities in the vicinity of  the easement strips; posts on Petrobras social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) and on the Dial 168 page on Facebook (https://lnkd.in/e6gWT2u); and publication of a recreational video of the Ludo game on the pipeline easement strip, to explain the importance of the pipelines and what is allowed in the areas through which they pass.

Dial 168 Day is an initiative that comprises a package of activities that yields positive results. One example is the Transpetro partnership with Petrobras, which this year developed the Safe Community Project,  supported by the Petrobras Socioenvironmental Program. Conducted with the expertise of the  Fight for Peace Institution, the initiative intends to benefit approximately 4 thousand people by 2023 in regions traversed by the pipelines operated by Transpetro in the communities of  Mar Vermelho in Savoyzinho in São Paulo (SP), and Jardim Centenário and Parque São Miguel, in Guarulhos (SP). The project involves a set of educational activities with residents for pipeline integrity preservation and organized settlement of these regions, including employment mentorship for youths desiring to enter the labor market.

The activities are part of the Petrobras Pipeline Protection Program (Pró-Dutos). In addition to the relationship with communities neighboring the pipeline networks, the program includes various other initiatives for combating, reducing and mitigating risks related to pipeline thefts. There are multidisciplinary actions in six areas: intelligence, legislation, social responsibility, communications, operations technology and contingency technology – all developed in collaboration with state and federal government intelligence and security forces.