45% of the votes in favor were Lula’s base

This Wednesday (21), by 54 votes to 13, the PL (Bill) that flexes the rules for environmental licensing. The, which creates LGLA (General Law on Environmental Licensing), a theme discussed in Congress since 2004, has been approved with changes and will return to.

Although it said it, in, that the PL “affront the Constitution”, e “represents significant discruitment of the rule […] and risk to environmental and social security”, 2/3 of the senators of the government base voted in favor of the project, representing 45% of the favorable votes to the measure.

Of the 37 present senators whose parties are part of the president’s government’s terrace (PT), 24 voted “sim”And only 13 voted“no”Of the 13 votes contrary to the project, 8 were from PT, 2 of PDT, 2 of the PSD and 1 of the PSB.

The whole bench of União Brasil, a caption that indicated the Minister of Communications and has the Tourism Folder, voted in favor of PL. Of the 11 PSD congressmen who participated in the vote, 9 voted against and 2 in favor. Gilberto Kassab’s party has 3 ministries in the Lula administration :, mines and energy, and fishing.

See how each of the 68 senators were voted for:

MDB (7 votes in favor)

NOVO (1 vote in favor)

PDT (1 vote in favor, 2 against)

PL (12 votes in favor)

We can (4 votes in favor)

PP (6 votes in favor)

PSB (1 vote in favor, 1 against)

PSD (9 votes in favor, 2 against)

PSDB (3 votes in favor)

PT (8 votes against)

Republicans (4 votes in favor)

União Brasil (6 votes in favor)

PROJECT

The PL aims to standardize the procedures for issuing environmental license throughout the country and flexible the granting of licenses for some enterprises. According to the rapporteur, Senator (PP-MS), current legislation configures a true Cipoal with about 27,000 normatives. To understand more details of the project, read this one from Poder360.

The project, of former Deputy Luciano Zica (PT-SP), was processed for 17 years in the House and was approved in 2021. In the Senate, arrived 4 years ago and was the result of several negotiations.

The vote in the CMA (Environment Commission) and the CRA (Agriculture Commission) had a unified senators report (MDB-RO) and Tereza Cristina. The project was approved in the two commissions on Tuesday (20.MAI) and went to the plenary with urgent request.

It is by environmental licensing that the government authorizes the installation, expansion and operation of enterprises that use natural resources or may impact the environment.

Some examples include the construction and expansion of highways, airports, textiles, metallurgists, and paper and cellulose, as well as gas stations, hydroelectric and urban and urban projects such as hotels and subdivisions, among others.

The project deals with the licensing carried out in the bodies and entities of the federated entities of the (National Environment System).

Main Senate Changes

One of the changes made by the Senate is the creation of a new type of license, with simplified rite, for projects considered priority by the government.

The expectation of some senators is that this license, with exemption from stages, allows the exploration of oil in the Amazon (as in the case of the request made by Petrobras to explore oil on the equatorial margin of the Amazon River).

This change, one of the main in the text, was made on Wednesday (21.MAI) in Plenary. Proposed by the Senator (Union-AP), president of the Senate, the amendment creates LAE (Special Environmental License).

The procedure, based on a single license, will have a special rite, with exemption from steps and priority in the analysis. This type of license will be applied to projects previously listed as priority by the Executive Power, based on the statement of the Government Council. The maximum analysis period for the issuance of the license will be 1 year.

Another controversial change was the inclusion in LGLA of large or high -risk mining activities. The text approved in the House had removed these activities from the scope of law, referring the licensing of the large mining to the provisions of the (National Environmental Council) until specific law was enacted.

• List of activities not subject to environmental licensing

Another change in relation to the text of the House was in the list of activities that are not subject to environmental licensing.

The Senate has maintained the exemption of licensing only for activities that do not offer environmental risk or for activities that need to be performed for national sovereignty or public calamity.

In plenary, the maintenance and improvement works on previously paved highways were included in the dismissal.

The project approved in the Senate provides that the LAC (Environmental License for Adhesion and Commitment) will be simplified and issued through a kind of self -declaration of adhesion and commitment of the entrepreneur, with the requirements pre -established by the licensing authority.

The project releases LAC for most enterprises in Brazil, as it will be valid for licenses in general, except only those of high impact on the environment.

By the House text, the only condition for LAC would be that the activity or enterprise was not potentially causing significant environmental degradation.

In the Senate, Senators Jaques Wagner (PT-BA), Randolfe Rodrigues (PT-AP) and Eliziane Gama (PSD-MA) were partially accepted to provide that LAC will only be allowed for small or medium-sized or medium-sized polluting enterprises, in which the licensing entity has not identified environmental relevance or fragility.

Ministry of the Environment

While the project was in the Senate, the Ministry of the Environment released a press release with criticism of the bill. According to the folder, the text of the Senate “It represents significant disruption of existing rule on the subject and represents risk to environmental and social security in the country”.

In the statement, the Ministry, commanded by Marina Silva (Rede), also stated that the project “affront”The Constitution“which in article 225 guarantees to Brazilian citizens the right to the environmentally balanced environment, with the requirement of prior environmental impact study for the installation of any work or activity that may cause environmental losses”.

The ministry draws attention to the legal insecurity created with the PL, adding that the text is “silent”Regarding the climate crisis“without even mentioning the issue in its content”.

In the vision of the folder, one of the most sensitive points refers to lac. “In practice, the text would allow the use of lac for a significant percentage of enterprises that are currently licensed”, Says Note.

Another aspect reinforced by the ministry is that the PL removes attributions from Sisnama, Conama and State Councils. “By transferring decisive competences to federative entities in an uncoordinated manner, it can stimulate a ‘antiabient competition’ between states and municipalities, which, in order to attract more investments, may offer less rigorous flexibilities and standards”.

Also highlights the weakening of the ICMBio (Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation) “by allowing enterprises in conservation units to be licensed without the mandatory manifestation of the area managing”.

With information from the Senate Agency