Mato Grosso leads the Environmental Democracy Index, but the result is still only fair
Mato Grosso ranks first in the Environmental Democracy Index among the states of the Legal Amazon, with a final score of 48.3 points - a performance classified as "regular". The state's position, therefore, reveals more the weaknesses of the other entities than a situation of local excellence.
The state had the best performance in three of the four dimensions evaluated. In Access to Environmental Information, it scored 61.5 points ("good"), with data available in 25 of the 29 categories assessed. Despite good disclosure practices, there are still problems with updating, detailing and standardization.
In Access to Justice, the score was 60 points ("good"), with emphasis on the presence of specialized structures in the Judiciary, the Public Prosecutor's Office and the Public Defender's Office.
The Access to Participation dimension scored 42.4 points ("fair"), which demonstrates the need for improvements in the functioning of the state environmental council, conservation unit councils and public environmental licensing hearings. The Protection of Environmental Defenders dimension had the worst performance: 29.3 points ("bad"), even with the existence of a state program. There is a lack of transparency, anonymous reporting channels, standards for protecting whistleblowers and protocols for the actions of security forces.
Highlights from the Mato Grosso evaluation:
- Final score: 48.3 points - "regular" classification
- 1st place overall among the states of the Legal Amazon
- Best performance among the states in three dimensions: Access to Information, Access to Participation and Protection of Environmental Defenders
- Worst result in the state: Protection of Environmental Defenders, with 29.3 points
- Positive highlight: existence of environmental nuclei in conflict resolution centers
- Main weaknesses: lack of structures for indigenous peoples and lack of protocols for protecting environmental defenders
