Institutions and Environmental Governance: The Case of Environmental Permitting for Offshore Oil and Gas Projects

Abstract

This work is an effort to link institutions and environmental governance, focusing on the Brazilian offshore oil and gas sector. A case study detailing the experience of an environmental unit of Brazil`s federal environmental agency (Coordenação Geral de Petróleo e Gás, Diretoria de Licenciamento, Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis - CGPEG/DILIC/IBAMA) is used for this purpose. This unit is in charge of handling environmental permits for projects in this area. The methodology follows the institutional analysis and development framework as described by Ostrom (2011). Results reveal an environmental governance system characterized by the lack of policies that complement the issuing of environmental permits. In addition, we describe the institutional environment at CGPEG, demonstrating the existence of trust among its personnel. Finally, our conclusions indicate the importance of ensuring the permanence of the public staff, as well as the need to structure strategic governance systems.

Bolsonaro's government and the dismantling of the participative institutions in environmental policy

“…At the same time that government policies were sustaining large infrastructure projects (as with the cases of the transposition of the São Francisco river and the Belo Monte hydroelectric plant) and promoting large‐scale agricultural and mineral activities, these governments presented positive institutional results in terms of the strengthening of areas of control and environmental inspections. In this period, the IBAMA, an organ responsible for environmental licensing and inspection, increased exponentially the number of environmental analysts appointed through public applications (Bredariol & d'Avignon, 2018). The last nominations were made in 2016, and as of 2023 there were no further opportunities for public applications for a position in this body.…”