The Federal Government performs better than the states of the Legal Amazon, but has gaps
The Federal Government was the only entity evaluated with a "good" performance in the Environmental Democracy Index, with 64.8 points, and higher than all the states in the Legal Amazon. It was rated higher than the states in all four dimensions. Despite this, shortcomings persist in terms of effectiveness, federative coordination and the inclusion of vulnerable groups.
In the Access to Environmental Justice dimension, the Union registered 81.9 points ("excellent"), with emphasis on the existence of specialized structures in the four bodies and entities evaluated: the Public Prosecutor's Office, the Public Defender's Office, the Judiciary and police stations.
In Access to Environmental Information, the score was 68.9 points ("good"). Most of the 29 categories evaluated are available, but there are frequent problems with completeness, updating or format for reuse. In the Protection of Environmental Defenders dimension, the Union scored 58.7 points ("fair"). The Program for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, Communicators and Environmentalists exists and is nationwide. However, there are no protocols or training for security agents in cases involving environmental defenders.
The Access to Participation dimension had the lowest performance in the Union: 49.7 points ("fair"), which demonstrates the need for improvements in the functioning of the state environmental council, conservation unit councils and public environmental licensing hearings.
Highlights of the Union's evaluation:
- Final score: 64.8 points - best overall performance in the Environmental Democracy Index
- Access to Environmental Justice: 81.9 points ("excellent") -
- Access to Environmental Information: 68.9 points ("good")
- Protection of Environmental Defenders: 58.7 points ("fair")
- Access to Participation: 49.7 points ("fair")
- Positive points: specialized structures in justice system bodies
- Weaknesses: gaps in environmental data, lack of protocol and training for security agents
