Amazonas performs well in access to environmental justice, but fails in social participation and protection of defenders
Amazonas scored 37.8 points in the Environmental Democracy Index, ranking fourth among the states of the Legal Amazon. Despite being in the top four in all dimensions, its overall performance is considered "poor".
The state's main strength is in the Access to Environmental Justice dimension, where it scored 61.8 points ("good"). Amazonas has specialized structures in the three bodies evaluated - the Judiciary, the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Public Defender's Office - for environmental or land issues.
In terms of Access to Environmental Information, the state performed well (43.6 points). Although it makes some of the required data available, most of it is incomplete, outdated or in a format that is unsuitable for reuse. The worst evaluations occurred in the dimensions Access to Participation (32.6 points) and Protection of Environmental Defenders (13.3 points), classified as "bad" and "terrible", respectively. With regard to the latter, despite the existence of a state program, it was inactive at the time of data collection. There are also no protocols for public security agents in cases involving defenders and the use of body cameras in environmental or land conflicts.
Highlights from the Amazonas evaluation:
- Final score: 37.8 points - "bad" rating
- 4th place among the states of the Legal Amazon
- Best performance in Access to Environmental Justice: 61.8 points - "good"
- Regular performance in Access to Environmental Information (43.6)
- Poor results in Access to Participation (32.6) and very poor results in Protection of Environmental Defenders (13.3)
- Positive points: specialized structures in justice system bodies,
- Weaknesses: availability of environmental data and inactive protection program for environmental defenders
