Ferramentas de Gestão Ambiental Aplicadas na Zona Costeira do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil

Abstract

Although the legal basis for the occupation and conservation of the coastal environment are already established, the economic interests added to the pressure by its occupation and use still generate conflicts with its ecological and socio-cultural functions. To mediate these conflicts in Brazil some tools were created, such as the " Plano Nacional de Gerenciamento Costeiro " (Plan for Coastal Management) (PNGC), which is an initiative of the government to respond adequately to the demands and problems relating to the coastal area: this plan aims at making the zoning of uses and activities and give priority to the conservation and protection of renewable or nonrenewable natural resources; the " Zoneamento Ecológico Econômico " (Ecological-Economic Planning) (ZEE), which is a legal instrument for the land use diagnosis, ensuring environmental quality for water and soil, and also biodiversity conservation; the " Projeto Orla " (project for the seashore), that contributes to the implementation of general guidelines for disciplining the use and occupation of the seashore and, therefore, seeks to reduce the negative effects of the increasing use and destruction in this area; the " Plano de Manejo de Dunas " (Dune Management Plan), which is a plan to control the uses and appropriation of the dunes area, and it also aims at controling the degradation and the recovery of the morphology and its natural vegetation; and the " Cartas SAO " (Oil Spill Sensitivity Maps), that constitutes the primary source of information for delineating response actions in case of oil spills, once it identifies environments with priority of preservation for directing the available resources more efficiently and mobilizing teams for protection and cleaning. This paper includes an assessment of the status and prospects of using these managing tools in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The existence of these tools helps to manage and, along with the establishment of the legal basis, it contributes to policies for conservation and environmental sustainability. Although it is generally agreed that the perspectives provided by the Federal Law N. 7.661/1988 and Federal Decree N .5.300/2004 should be implemented, the practice has shown some problems in putting these and other instruments into practice. These problems are related to the operational management system and lack of clear standards directed for land use and environmental control. In addition, there is a lack of involvement and responsibility by municipalities in the process of the Integrated Management for the Coastal Zone. Thus, the focus of the environmental agency, responsible for the PNGC and ZEE activities, is in recovery and rehabilitation of degraded or disfigured areas. This focus leaves aside planning activities in regions not