Evaluation of the Coastal Ecological-Economic Zoning (ZEEC) as a tool to subsidize the environmental licensing of the activity of sand mining in the northern coast of Rio Grande do Sul

Abstract

The objective of this article was to evaluate the use of the Coastal Ecological-Economic Zoning (CEEZ) as a tool to subsidize the environmental licensing of the Sand Mining activities of the Northern Coast of Rio Grande do Sul. Therefore, the study was carried out in two phases: the first analyzed the environmental licensing processes regarding the use of CEEZ and its agreement with the environmental guidelines of the instrument. The second analyzed the process of management of the mining activity based on the activity adaptation procedures to the CEEZ guidelines and the result of the management process activity itself. CEEZ was not cited in 74% of the license documents, however, 94% of the licenses analyzed are in compliance with the guidelines of the instrument. After analyzing the management process, it was observed that 49% of the mining companies participated in the negotiations with State Fundation for Environmental Protection (FEPAM), which signed an Environmental Control Term (ECT) for the adequacy or deactivation of its activities. After the term of validity of the TCA, nine (52,4% mining companies were deactivated, six (35,3%) remained in activity and two (11,8%) remained without definition. At the end of the management process, six mining companies effectively complied with the ECT, while the others' processes did not present conclusive information on compliance with the term, or were unavailable for consultation or yet filed without definition. Finally, it is concluded that although the CEEZ of the North Coast is not regulated nor it is of mandatory use, it fulfilled its role as a planning and management tool, supporting other instruments such as environmental licensing. The determinant aspect of the research was the analysis of the conflict generated between the mining activity and the guidelines of the CEEZ, which confirms the importance of this tool in the planning of the region activities.