Reasons to Approve and Deny Hydropower Projects in Brazil 

Cidade Universitaria, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Abstract: This paper reviews and discusses how the concept of environmental viability is applied by the Brazilian federal environmental agency, IBAMA, for decision purposes regarding the issuance of previous licenses for hydropower plants. It presents the main justifications used in EIAs and by the licensing body to certify the environmental viability or to deny the application for a Previous License. A survey was carried out based on the review of federal environmental licensing processes of hydropower plants that underwent a previous licensing phase. We highlighted the following as arguments to justify environmental viability at EIA Reports: possibility of minimizing negative impacts predicted by the adoption of environmental programs and mitigation measures, followed by possibility of income generation and dynamization of the region's economy. We frequently observed IBAMA's requests for adjustments to the project to subsidize the issuance of previous licenses, most of which were issued. When no alternatives were envisaged to make the project viable, the license was denied and the environmental non-viability was declared. We identified the criteria used by IBAMA to subsidize an environmental viability decision.