ID: 1951
Presenting Author: Juliano Scarpelin
Session: 542 - Are We Living in the Post-Consultation Era?
Status: pending
The study suggests that land use restrictions from power lines, though recurrently raised in public hearings, remain inconsistently addressed and weakly integrated into Brazil’s EIA
Public hearings are a key mechanism for public participation in Brazil’s environmental impact assessment (EIA) and permitting processes. Following the pandemic, public hearings were modified to allow for online and hybrid participation. However, it is still unclear how concerns raised during public participation are addressed in the permitting process. The power line permitting process is important for discussing land impacts. These projects impose land use restrictions on private properties. These restrictions are addressed through a process that occurs outside of the EIA and permitting. This process includes a land assessment and the development of a compensation proposal. Proponents have the ability to assess and pay for land, even in cases where the owner has no interest in negotiating. These issues are a well known source of concern in the power lines public hearings.
This study examines how concerns about land use restrictions caused by power lines raised during public hearings are addressed in the permitting process.
We analyzed 17 power line permitting cases. We performed a thorough review of the scoping documents, public hearing documents, and technical reports.The analysis revealed ongoing concerns about land use restrictions and the lack of public participation in developing compensation criteria for restricted land use. The EIA addressed these concerns inconsistently, highlighting a gap in mitigation measures.
Brazilian, Forest Engineer, and PhD candidate. Works at environmental federal agency on power line permitting, focusing on socioeconomic impacts.
Coauthor 1: Beatriz Magno Moreira