A g r i c u l t u r e , F i s h e r i e s a n d Fo o d
A study of the development and implementation of
strategies for sustainable local land management
based on practical experiences
Part 2: Brazil
Imprint
Published by:
Deutsche Gesellschaft für
Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH
Division Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Sector Project Land Management
P.O. Box 5180
65726 Eschborn/Germany
T
F
E
I
+49 6196 79 – 0
+49 6196 79 – 1115
[email protected]
www.gtz.de
Responsible:
Tanja Pickardt, Sector Project Land Management
Author:
Dr. Christoph Trusen
Source and Copyright of Pictures:
© GTZ
Cover (face): Paulina Campos Monteros, cover (back): Juan Pratginestós / PPG7-GTZ
Contact person at the Federal Ministry for
Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ):
Dr. Stefan Schmitz
Design:
Nike Affeld
Eschborn, July 2010
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Table of Contents
List of Abbreviations.......................................................................................................................................... 3
1.
Executive Summary.............................................................................................................................. 4
2.
Introduction........................................................................................................................................... 6
3.
Land Tenure, Land Use and Deforestation in the Amazon Region............................................. 7
3.1
Deforestation and its Drivers the Tropical Rainforest of the Brazilian Amazon Region......... 7
3.1.1
The Economic Drivers of Deforestation.......................................................................................... 7
3.1.2
The Land Tenure System as a Structural Cause of Deforestation............................................... 10
3.1.3
Land Tenure Regularisation: Law 11,952 (Formerly Mp 458)....................................................... 12
3.2
Land Management Strategies and Natural Resource Governance in the Amazon Region....... 13
4.
Land Management Strategies in the Amazon: The Experiences of the German Development
Cooperation Pilot Programme for the Conservation of the Brazilian Rainforests (PPG7)..... 15
4.1
Ecological and Economic Macro-Zoning of Land Use: The Example of Amazonas State..... 17
4.2
Participatory Local Land Use Planning............................................................................................ 21
4.2.1
Objectives, Operational Model and Methodological Procedures................................................. 22
4.2.2
Local Land Use Planning in Brasiléa (State of Acre)...................................................................... 25
4.3
Cadastre and Environmental Licensing of Rural Private Properties............................................ 29
5.
Conclusions............................................................................................................................................ 31
References............................................................................................................................................................. 34
Appendix............................................................................................................................................................... 36
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List of Abbreviations
BR
Brazilian Real (currency of Brazil)
GTZ
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit, German Technical
Cooperation
INCRA
National Institute for Colonization and Land Reform
NRPP
Natural Resource Policy Programme
PPG 7
International Pilot Programme to Conserve the Brazilian Rain Forest
REDD
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation
ZEE
Zoneamento Econômico e Ecológico, Ecological and Economic Zoning
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1.
Executive Summary
Brazil is by far the largest and most populous country in Latin America. It plays a key role in the sustainable
development of the region, which is closely related to issues of climate change and the future development of
deforestation in the Amazon basin. Even though deforestation rates have declined in recent years, losses in
forest cover are still high and they are responsible for Brazil remaining one of the world's top emitters of
greenhouse gases.
Today, the drivers of deforestation are well known. One of the most significant structural causes is the
obsolete land tenure system, under which property rights for 55% of the territory are not clear; a situation
that stimulates land grabbing and deforestation and makes environmental control very difficult.
Natural resource governance in the Amazon can basically be established with the implementation of a
combination of four strategies, which are closely related to land management:
Implementation of Brazilian environmental legislation, above all the enforcement of mandatory
forest reserves on private properties, using a satellite-based licensing system
Ecological and economic zoning of land use
Expansion of the protected areas system
Large-scale implementation of sustainable production systems.
In order to help control deforestation, German development cooperation and its Brazilian counterparts have
developed a system of land management strategies, as part of the Natural Resource Policy Programme
(NRPP), one of the major sub-programmes of the International Pilot Programme to Conserve the Brazilian
Rain Forest (PPG7). The strategic interventions of the NRPP operate at three different levels:
Ecological and economic macro-zoning of land use at state level
Local participatory land use planning
Cadastral and environmental licensing of private, rural properties.
With the collaboration of the German development cooperation, the NRPP participated in four macrozoning processes. The methodology developed for this divided the state territories into three basic zones:
Areas for consolidated use or for future expansion of production (commercial agriculture, cattle
ranching etc.)
Zones of controlled use, such as sustainable forest management
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Zones for special use: protected areas, indigenous territories or fragile ecosystems.
The zoning process produced a lot of strategic information to benefit future land management efforts, such
as the distribution of public land according to ownership (federal, state or municipal property), maps of the
regional dynamics of deforestation, and maps of planned protected areas. As a result of this process, for
example, the State of Amazonas created 16 new protected areas totalling 5 million hectares in the south of
the state, where deforestation pressure was very high. It should also be observed that the macro-zoning
exercise provided orientation and assistance to state policies and development programmes.
The second land management strategy supported by German development cooperation is the participatory
planning of local land use. This process is an important instrument for addressing land conflicts, and
environmental and social problems; it also helps to collect strategic information about local conditions. The
approach developed by the NRPP involves four phases of execution, which bring the following results:
Articulation: mobilisation of the stakeholders, creation of a special commission for political coordination,
formation of an advisory group for technical support, preparatory surveys etc.
Diagnosis: elaboration of a document containing a detailed profile of the local authority area, themed maps
showing, for instance, the evolution of deforestation, land tenure, protected areas, soils and vegetation.
Prognosis: elaboration of different development scenarios, identification of areas with high environmental
vulnerability, zoning of the local authority territory, recommendations for implementation.
Implementation: commitment document signed by the stakeholders and planning of the next steps.
The third strategy used to ensure proper governance of natural resources is the implementation of an
environmental licensing system, which aims to protect forest cover on private land. Under Brazilian law,
owners of rural property in the Amazon must maintain forest cover on 80% of the property, and must
furthermore protect riparian or floodplain forests. A digital cadastre of properties was introduced, listing
owners and protected areas, which provides controls and environmental monitoring. The impacts of this
system on deforestation were astonishing, as a drastic decrease was observed on registered properties.
Environmental licensing was established as a legal obligation by the Federal Ministry of Environment in 2002.
By 2005, all of the states in the Amazon region had started preparing for its implementation. However,
experience has shown that the system only functions properly if it can be guaranteed that violators will be
prosecuted.
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Despite the visible progress in combating deforestation, there are still a number of challenges to overcome:
Deforestation on small parcels (smaller than 50 hectares), with special emphasis on land reform
settlements
Persistent problems with land administration and tenure regularisation
The integration of different strategies to form a single systematic approach to natural resource
governance, with emphasis on positive, economic incentives.
2. Introduction
The purpose of this study is to document and analyse the key experiences and lessons learned from
sustainable regional and local land management strategies that were developed and implemented with the
support of German Development Cooperation as part of the PPG7 programme. The regional focus of the
study draws on experiences from the Brazilian states of Acre and Amazonas. To fulfil this objective, the study
will analyse and document three land management strategies:
Economic and ecological macro-zoning of land use with regional references to the State of
Amazonas
Participatory local land use planning with regional references to the State of Acre
Environmental licensing of private properties.
According to the Terms of Reference the expected output should contain:
An executive summary
A concept-based introduction on the importance of land management for rainforest protection
Documentation, discussion and evaluation of the experiences of technical cooperation in the
development and implementation of sustainable land management strategies at the local level,
considering various issues, such as:
- Capacity development processes used by local and regional stakeholders
- Local resource governance
- Examples of local land-use administration
- Land-distribution and land-use planning
- Scaling up and mainstreaming approaches.
Conclusions.
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3. Land Tenure, Land Use and Deforestation in
the Amazon Region
3.1
Deforestation and its Drivers in the Tropical Rainforest of the Brazilian
Amazon Region
3.1.1 The Economic Drivers of Deforestation
Brazil is by far the largest and most populous country in Latin America; its enormous natural resources
undoubtedly play a key role in the overall sustainable development of the region. Undoubtedly, one of the key
areas in deciding future regional development patterns is the Amazon basin, which is home to the largest
rainforest on earth. The overarching region of 'Legal Amazonia'1 covers about 5 million km2 and has an
estimated population of 21 million (in 2000).
As the BMZ strategic document on the Brazilian rainforest points out: 'Important strides have been made in
the past ten years toward the sustainable development of the Amazon region and the conservation of its
resources, but the region and the issue of environmental and climate protection has not been given top
priority by policy makers at large. The interests in economic development and capitalisation of the Amazon
region, which have not been conservation-oriented, dominate and are very influential at every level of politics.
Despite clearly changing attitudes among the general public and policy makers toward the necessity of
sustainable use of natural resources, institutions at the federal and state level are still too weak both politically
and administratively to develop strong and effective development policies geared toward sustainability.'2
1
2
See Map 1 in the Appendix.
BMZ: Eckpunktepapier Tropenwald, Entwurf von 03/2008.
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The following table shows the development of deforestation rates in the Amazon region:
Year
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Deforestation (km2)
21,050
17,770
13,730
11,030
13,730
14,896
14,896
29,059
18,161
13,227
17,383
17,295
18,226
18,165
21,394
25,247
27,423
18,846
14,109
11,532
11,986
Change (%)
-16
-23
-20
25
8
0
95
-38
-27
31
-1
6
0
17
19
9
-31
-49
-31
4
Source: Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais – INPE (www.inpe.br).
In the 1980s and 1990s, deforestation in Brazil was strongly correlated to the country‟s economic
performance, with periods of decline at the end of the 80s and an increase between 1993 and 1998. In recent
years the correlation has shifted from national economic growth to developments in international commodity
markets (beef, soya), and in financial exchange rates. These factors provide the main explanation for the rise
in deforestation immediately after the Lula administration took office (2002), and its slowdown since 2005.
Deforestation is essentially linked to agricultural expansion in the Amazon region, which provokes enormous
land use changes. The main drivers are:
cattle ranches
small-scale subsistence agriculture
large-scale commercial agriculture
illegal logging.
Cattle ranching is the leading cause of the deforestation and is responsible for roughly 70% of it. Currency
devaluation, the control of foot-and-mouth disease, state subsidies (credit, etc.) and beneficial infrastructure
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works have all resulted in a significant growth in beef production, consumption and, above all, exports, as
shown in the table below:
Source: Conservation International 2004: 21.
Between 1991 and 2005 the number of cattle raised in the Amazon region increased from 26.6 million to 60
million.
Another important driver is small-scale subsistence agriculture, which is responsible for approximately 20%
of the deforestation. Poor farmers, mainly from the northeast or south of Brazil, have been encouraged to
settle in the forest. Squatters traditionally acquire the right to continue using land by living on and 'using'3
unclaimed plots for one year and one day. After five years, the squatter acquires ownership, including the
right to sell this land4. The squatters normally use fire to clear the land, and practise shifting cultivation. In
recent years the state-organised agrarian reform settlements in the Amazon region have become a major
contributor to deforestation.
The part played by large-scale commercial agriculture (soybean cultivation, biofuel production and the
expansion of eucalyptus plantations) is estimated at between 5 and 10% of direct forest clearances, which is
relatively small. However, commercial agriculture has an important, indirect impact by consuming land
already cleared and pushing ranches and slash-and-burn farmers into the forest.
Illegal, mostly selective, logging is widespread in the rain forest. This usually leads to the construction of
logging roads for forest clearing processes, which are then used by ranchers and small farmers.
3
4
Deforestation makes the 'use' visible.
Recent changes in the Land Laws (so-called MP 458) will be discussed later.
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The expansion of the agricultural sector in the Amazon region is accompanied by infrastructure development,
such as road construction, which in turn accelerates the rate of deforestation. Experience shows that 75% of
deforestation occurs in a 100 km-wide strip alongside the newly constructed highways.
3.1.2 The Land Tenure System as a Structural Cause of Deforestation
One of the most significant political and structural causes of deforestation is the obsolete land tenure system.
A recent study revealed5 that property rights are uncertain in 53% of the territory of the Amazon region.
Source: Brito et al. 2009: 1.
Of the territorial area of Legal Amazonia (4.91 million km2), around 23% is supposedly privately owned,
although there is no validation of this in the land cadastre managed by the National Institute for Colonization
and Land Reform (INCRA)6. A further nine percent is accounted for by 'posses' (smallholdings)7 and 21% is
supposedly public land, located outside protected areas, and to a certain extent illegally occupied. Of the
remaining 47% of the region, we know that 4% is private, titled land and 43% consists of protected areas
(indigenous territories and conservation areas). However, illegal occupation is likely to be seen even in the
protected areas. It is estimated that, within conservation areas, unresolved tenure issues8 affect at least 10
million hectares.
Barreto et al. 2008.
See the map Geography of Landholding Uncertainty in the Amazon.
7 Under some circumstances the occupation of small portions of land for small-scale agriculture can be regularised into
'holdings' (posses).
8 Brito et. al.2009: 1.
5
6
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This situation is evidently a major threat to economic development, making it almost impossible to have an
effective environmental administration. Without any security of land property rights, little can be done in
terms of environmental control measures, such as implementing fines and penalties for illegal deforestation.
Furthermore, the situation provokes social conflicts and encourages illegal land grabbing.
Another important land tenure-related factor contributing to the destruction of natural resources is the lack
of conservation-oriented land-use and regional planning regulations, particularly at the local level.
A direct consequence of the combination of deficient land-use regulations or the lack of land-use planning,
and institutions that are susceptible to corruption, is illegal land grabbing. Together with illegal timber
harvesting, this practice turns forested areas into pasture land and in some regions ultimately opens the way
for soya cultivation. These activities are also connected to fraud, money laundering, drug trafficking, and
other criminal activities. Land concentration, land-use conflicts, violence, human rights violations and slavery
are concomitant problems.
Illegal land grabbing is clearly a highly lucrative business. Initial profits come from harvesting timber, which
provides start-up capital for subsequent activities. The remaining forested areas are then cleared and
converted to pasture. Livestock farming consolidates the squatter's power over the land, as farmers can gain
access to federal subsidies. The next logical step is the judicial validation of the power of disposal over the
land through fraudulent land registration processes. It is not uncommon for land then to be re-sold at a large
profit as the land can now be converted into 'soya deserts'. A portion of the profits is regularly invested in
building up the seller‟s political power structures, which reduces the chances of criminal prosecution or other
sanctions to roughly zero.
Land grabbing is not an isolated phenomenon restricted only to the Amazon region. The Brazilian Federal
Government itself estimates that 12% of the national territory – or 100 million hectares – have been illegally
grabbed. In 2000, for example, the National Institute for Colonization and Land Reform cancelled the
cadastres of 1,899 properties equivalent to more than 60 million hectares, half of them in the Amazon
region9.
Therefore, it must be concluded that the land tenure system in the Amazon region has failed to respond to
the following questions10:
What land is privately owned and which areas are public?
What public land belongs to the federation and what to the states?
9
Ministerio do Meio Ambiente 2006: 16.
See Trusen 2006: 15.
10
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What will be the future use of the undesignated areas (terras devolutas)?
Which land titles are legitimate and which are false, based on land grabbing, falsification and
corruption?
3.1.3 Land Tenure Regularisation: Law 11,952 (Formerly MP 458)
In order to resolve, at least partially, the land tenure problems in the Amazon region, the federal government
passed its Law 11,952 (formerly Medida Provisório 458) in June 2009. The objective of the law is to accelerate
the regularisation of tenure, with priority to the areas most threatened by deforestation. The law addresses
approximately 67.4 million hectares of federal land which has no clear designation (terras devolutas) and which
is occupied by an estimated 300,000 families. The rules apply to land parcels of up to 1,500 hectares, which
have been occupied peacefully and without conflict before December 1, 2004. The parcels should also
provide the main source of the respective families' income.
The main aspects of the law are:
Free concession of land use rights for plots of up to 100 hectares; from 100-400 hectares the
occupants must pay a symbolic price; and from 400 to 1,500 hectares local market prices apply.
The concessions are conditional for a ten-year period, dependent on adequate compliance with
environmental laws regulating the management and conservation of natural resources and forests11.
In cases of illegal deforestation the right to land use can be cancelled.
After three years of ownership, areas larger than 400 hectares can be transferred.
This law has been the source of much controversy and subject to massive criticism. The most important
arguments against it are:
The free or almost free distribution of land is a major incentive for further occupation. It imparts the
idea that land in the Amazon region has no value. By promoting the regularisation of landholdings in
zones that are already occupied, the government could stimulate a new race to occupy zones that are
now sparsely occupied by indigenous and local communities, in the expectation that future
regularisation may be allowed. This would threaten environmentally sensitive areas and stimulate
conflicts between current inhabitants and immigrants (Brito et al. 2009: 4).
There is an opening for land speculation by permitting the transfer of land titles after three years (for
parcels over 400 hectares).
11
In the Amazon region land holders have to maintain minimum forest cover of 80% as the so-called legal reserve.
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No attempt is made to identify and locate environmental damage that was done before issuing the
title deeds, and no prior agreements exist on how to restore such damage.
It would have been much better if the Ecological and Economic Zoning (Zoneamento Econômico e
Ecológico - ZEE) had been concluded first. Only three states (Acre, Pará and Rondônia) have had
their ZEE approved by state law, while two others (Amazonas and Roraima) are now finalising the
process. With zoning completed, the regularisation of land holdings could be better steered, and the
consolidation of occupancy could be avoided in areas which have the potential to become protected
areas, or where the land rights of local communities could be recognised.
It is almost impossible for the government to judge whether an occupation has been peaceful or not.
Therefore, it is probable that plots obtained through violent land grabbing will also be regularised,
thus endangering the rights of traditional populations.
There is insufficient institutional capacity to meet all demands, guarantee efficient implementation,
and monitor the environmental conditions.
On the other hand, there are arguments in favour of the law:
With the distribution of the land to small-scale farmers, the government is paying a social debt.
Ownership enables small farmers to access credits, technical assistance, and new markets.
With the process of tenure regularisation defined by law, it will be much easier to stop illegal
deforestation or any other environmental crimes, as individuals responsible for the land can be
identified.
The landholding regularisation will permanently resolve many land conflicts in the Amazon region.
Despite all the criticisms, the reaction to the law was immediate. In less than two months, the government
had registered more than 4,000 squatters for the land holding regularisation process, affecting a total of
737,000 hectares of land. The government estimates that within three years the process will be concluded.
3.2
Land Management Strategies and Natural Resource Governance in the
Amazon Region
The value and function of land management strategies for the governance of natural resources in the Amazon
basin can be analysed using the deforestation scenarios prepared by leading scientists in recent years12. The
scientists have developed an empirically-based, policy-sensitive model of Amazon deforestation that reflects
different scenarios ranging from 'business as usual' to effective 'governance'.
12
Soares-Filho, B.S., et al.: 2006.
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The first scenario assumes that recent deforestation trends will continue, that highways scheduled for paving
will be paved, that non-compliance with legislation will persist, that the level of obligatory forest reserves on
private lands will remain low, and that no new protected areas will be created. As much as 40% of the forests
inside protected areas are subject to deforestation.
On the other hand, the 'governance' scenario assumes that:
Brazilian environmental legislation is implemented across the region – principally the enforcement of
mandatory forest reserves on private properties using a satellite based licensing system.
Ecological and economic zoning of land use is carried out all across the region.
The existing system of protected areas is expanded.
Sustainable production systems can be implemented on a large scale.
Map 3 in the appendix illustrates the results of the modelling procedure until 2050 for both scenarios. The
impacts of the 'business as usual' scenario are:
Forested areas will shrink from currently 5.3 million km2 to 3.2 million km2 in 2050, with regional
distribution as shown in the map.
Eight of twelve major watersheds will lose more than half their forest cover.
Eighteen of the 32 major forested eco-regions will lose more than 40% of their forest cover
By 2050 the annual carbon emissions will equate to four years of current annual emissions
worldwide.
The 'governance' scenario will have the following results:
Forested areas will shrink to 4.5 million km2, which represents an avoided deforestation of 1.3
million km2 compared to the other scenario.
The number of watersheds, eco-regions and mammalian species under threat will reduce by about
two-thirds.
Carbon emissions equivalent to two years of global human-induced emissions will be avoided – more
than eight times the worldwide reduction in greenhouse gas emissions achieved during the first
compensation period of the Kyoto Protocol.
These scenarios and the empirical determination of the key elements and variables of a natural resource
governance system clearly demonstrate the enormous importance of implementing sound land management
strategies. According to the scientific findings, essential measures to reduce deforestation in the Amazon
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basin include the ecological and economic zoning of land use, as well as the creation of new protected areas
and the enforcement of environmental laws.
4.
Land Management Strategies in the Amazon: The Experiences of the German
Development Cooperation Pilot Programme to Conserve the Brazilian
Rainforests (PPG7)
The Pilot Programme is an international initiative launched in 1992 by the Brazilian Government, civil society
organisations and the international community. Its purpose is to develop innovative tools and methods to
help conserve the Brazilian rainforest.
One of the most important sub-programmes of the PPG7 was the Natural Resource Policy Programme
(NRPP), implemented in cooperation with the state and local governments. This aimed to support the
sustainable use of natural resources by defining and implementing appropriate models for an integrated
environmental management system. The project lasted from June 1995 to December 2007 and had an
estimated budget of USD 86 million. Technical and financial contributions came from the Rain Forest Trust
Fund (administered by the World Bank), the German Government (technical and financial cooperation
administered by GTZ and KfW Entwicklungsbank, respectively) and the European Commission13. Since
2007, GTZ has continued to promote land management strategies in the Amazon basin through a new
programme of technical cooperation.
To control deforestation by implementing sound land management strategies, German Development
Cooperation and its Brazilian partners14 in the NRPP developed a concept involving three different levels of
intervention, and respective instruments:
The state level: ecological and economic macro-zoning of land use
Prioritised regions and local areas: local participatory zoning and planning of land use
Farm level: land use planning and environmental control of rural properties.
For a complete historical review of the NRPP see Ministério do Meio Ambiente 2008.
The main Brazilian counterparts were the Federal Ministry of the Environment and the state and municipal
governments of Amazonas, Pará, Acre and Rondônia.
13
14
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The following diagram illustrates the concept:
Land Management Instruments and Intervention Levels
Source: PowerPoint presentation by GTZ Brazil, translation by the author of this study.
It is important to point out that, in Brazil, GTZ uses the term 'zoning' in a very broad sense. Zoning and the
organisation of territorial space require elements of information, analysis, planning, political decisions,
legislation, administration and control15. These elements form different interconnected and superimposed
platforms, which are illustrated in the diagram on the following page.
The first informative platform consists of all of the technical information required for the zoning of land use:
environmental and economic diagnosis, maps, satellite images, statistics, etc. This information is then fed into
the second step of prognoses and development scenarios, or feasibility studies. At the affirmative planning
stage, there should be agreement on the appropriate scenario for the land space in question. Typical products
are development plans, governmental programmes or investment guides.
According to GTZ material, taken together these elements form 'Gestão Territorial', a term which will be translated in
this context as 'land management'.
15
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Figure: Different Intervention Platforms for Land Management
Authoritative
Administration
Legislative
Affirmative
Development Planning
Indicative
Land Use Planning
Informative
Geographical Information System
Command and Control
Measures
Laws, Creation of Protected
Areas
Development Plans
Scenarios
Maps, Statistics, Satellite
Images
Source: Del Prette et al. 2006: 47, translation by the author.
The fourth platform implies the transformation of the plans and programmes into laws or normative
regulations. At this stage, zoning needs legal recognition. The uppermost level then covers the
implementation of the legal measures; it includes environmental licensing or command and control measures.
It is important to point out that a major contribution of German Development Cooperation to land
management in the Amazon region was the introduction of local participation to the procedures used. In the
case of macro-zoning, the initial methodology was limited to a very analytic and scientific vision of natural
resources, with little space allowed for the participation of the population. Therefore, the NRPP made its
support conditional on the creation of a State Zoning Commission, in which a broad spectrum of
stakeholders participated (Ministério do Meio Ambiente 2008: 43), representing the most important segments
of society.
4.1
Ecological and Economic Macro-Zoning of Land Use: The Example of
Amazonas State
With the collaboration of German Development Cooperation, the Natural Resource Policy Programme
(NRPP) participated in four macro-zoning processes, the last of which occurred in the State of Amazonas16.
The methodology, results and impacts of the process can best be illustrated using this most recent case study,
which is probably the most important one in terms of forest conservation.
With 1.5 million km2, Amazonas is the biggest state of the Amazon region. On the other hand,
The others were in Acre, Pará and Rondônia. For a historical outline of zoning processes in Brazil, see Ministério de
Meio Ambiente 2008: 32pp.
16
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with a population of 3.3 million, it has a very low population density of 2.05 inhabitants per km 2. The state
therefore enjoys excellent conditions for land use zoning. Although the rainforest in Amazonas is one of the
best preserved17 in Brazil, it still faces serious threats, mainly in the south of the state, where the expansion of
the agricultural frontier is causing deforestation.
Discussions about the application of land-use zoning on a state-wide scale began in 1995. In 1996, a state
commission on ecological and economic zoning was created, with the broad participation of state agencies,
scientific institutions and civil society organisations. GTZ's technical assistance started two years later.
During the first stage, the zoning process and the creation of an adequate methodology focused mainly on
establishing protected areas, but it soon became clear that this would not, in itself, be sufficient to control
deforestation and promote the sustainable use of natural resources. Above all, the productive sector voiced its
concerns at not being properly included in the zoning process. An adequate balance was needed between the
conservation of natural resources and economic and social development. Eventually the stakeholders opted
for an approach that divided the space into three categories:
Areas for consolidated use or for future expansion of production
Areas for controlled use
Areas for special use.
The table on page 19 and Map 4 in the appendix illustrate the final product of the macro-zoning process.
Category A consists of land reform settlements promoted and organised by the federal government, titled
properties given over principally to agricultural activities, and areas with clear potential for further productive
expansion. These areas are usually close to urban or rural settlements that possess infrastructure and services.
The area of land belonging to this category is roughly 210,000 km2 – some 14% of the state‟s territory.
The most important zone for 'controlled use' consists of the areas designated for the sustainable use of
natural forest resources. In these areas, usage and conservation go hand in hand, mainly because sustainable
forest management offers economic opportunities for the local communities. This zone covers more than
30% of the Amazonas territory. The 'special use zone' basically consists of existing or planned protected
areas, indigenous territories and fragile ecosystems. It covers nearly 60% of the territory.
Map 4 in the appendix shows the aggregated result of the zoning process. It includes some valuable byproducts derived over the years from many working groups on policy, scientific research, consultancies, etc.
One of the most important of these relates to the land tenure system, and shows which areas of public land
belong to the state, which to the federal government and which to the local authorities18.
17
18
Amazonas has lost approximately 10% of its original forest cover.
See Map 5 in the appendix.
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Table: Spatial Categories and Zones in the Brazilian State of Amazonas, after the Macro-zoning of Land Use
Categories
Zones
A) Consolidated use and
areas
for
productive
expansion
(mainly
agriculture)
Consolidated zones
Expansion zones
B) Controlled Use
Characteristics
Size (in %)
Areas with productive structure already defined, dynamic 5.87
entropic occupation, infrastructure and rural services, urban
and rural settlements, land reform settlements
Areas with aptitude for productive expansion, close to 8.29
settlements
Areas affected by early deforestation process, located close to 2.03
Puffer zones of rural Category A areas.
urban settlements
Areas with little or no environmental degradation. Potential for
Areas for sustainable sustainable forest management, eco-tourism, sustainable 31.33
extraction activities, fisheries etc.
natural resource management
C) Special Use
Areas with priority for conservation, proposed or planned 2.66
Space with potential for protected areas under state, local or federal administration
the creation of protected areas
Protected areas of different categories already created. Under
state, local or federal administration
27.37
Protected areas
Indigenous territories
Indigenous territories under the administration of the National
Indigenous Foundation (Fundação Nacional do Indio – 27.7
FUNAI)
Fragile ecosystems
Vulnerable ecosystems not covered by the other categories
Territorial overlaps between
categories
Source: Extracted and translated from the Map of Macro-zoning (see appendix, Map 4).
1.54
6.79
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This distribution is extremely important because it defines, as a starting point, which authorities have to deal
with land tenure regularisation in specific areas. Other by-products include maps that show:
the delimitation of indigenous territories
the existing land reform settlements
the regional dynamics of deforestation
geological structures, soils, vegetation, and geomorphology
production infrastructure
actual and planned protected areas.
All the maps are the result of exhaustive diagnosis and consultations with stakeholders, with numerous
organisations involved in their development. The zoning produced essential information for the protection
and the sustainable use of natural resources, and for the rational planning of space. Undoubtedly, the most
important impact was the creation of 16 state protected areas in the NRPP priority regions, with a total area
of 5 million hectares19. The creation of the protected areas, mainly in the south, has helped to stop land
grabbing and deforestation.
The most important difficulties facing the process were20:
the enormous territorial dimension of the state
the lack of qualified human resources
the very complicated logistics in the field
the participation of institutions with very different organisational cultures and capacities.
Positive results were:
the generation and collection of very rich technical information about the region
the formulation of a development plan for the south of the state
the increased effectiveness of decisions and public interventions for the creation of protected areas.
Some of the most important lessons learned21:
Making the technical components of zoning compatible with a participatory process strengthens the
role of the stakeholders and makes them feel part of the process.
See Map 6 in appendix.
Governo do Estado do Amazonas 2007: 66.
21 According to the Ministry of Environment, see Ministério do Meio Ambiente 2008: 47.
19
20
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Effective participation requires articulation and mobilisation, which increases the time needed and
the demand for other resources used.
Prior articulation, differentiated by sectors (e.g. agro-business, small scale agriculture, logging firms
etc.) favours stakeholder participation, as well as the prior knowledge of interests and dynamics in
each sector.
Before and during the process, it is important to train the technical staff in facilitation and other
participatory techniques, as well as in conflict management.
Presence doesn‟t mean participation. The degree of participation is related to the level of previous
awareness and information.
The spatial presentation of information favours the participation of the private sector and local
communities because they can see themselves on the maps.
It is important to translate the technical language into one that is easy to understand for all the
stakeholders.
Finally, overall impacts should be assessed, particularly the issue of how macro-zoning has affected and
supported other political programmes and policies in the states22.
Policies and programmes pursued in Acre:
Sustainable Development Programme, financed by the Inter-American Development Bank
Support Programme for Indigenous Populations, financed by the National Development Bank
State Policy Programme of Land Reform
Creation of a State Agency for Land Administration
Creation of a State System of Protected Areas
State Policy on Hydro Resources and their Management
Strategic Governmental Planning until 2010.
Policies and programmes pursued in Amazonas:
Creation of a Protected Areas Mosaic in the south of the state to stop the expansion of deforestation
Subsidies for the creation of new land reform settlements in the local authority area of Apui.
22
See Ministério do Meio Ambiente 2008: 49-50.
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4.2
Participatory Local Land Use Planning
The second important land management strategy used to protect Brazilian rainforests is the participatory
planning of local land use in regions that are considered strategically important for the effort to stop
deforestation. The local planning of land use was developed as an instrument to address land use conflicts,
and environmental and social problems, and to gain detailed strategic knowledge about local conditions.
Local land use planning has another function, complementary to macro-zoning; both should be understood
as open, continual processes. While macro-zoning offers a broad orientation on macro strategies, which are
also relevant for the local level, local planning should be considered a social and political process – as an
effort to find a common denominator between social groups in order to make the macro strategies
compatible with local interests. Furthermore, it has an important function in the development of local
stakeholders' capacities to participate efficiently in the process and to defend their own interests (del Prette et
al. 2007: 74).
Local land use planning processes were conducted in the states of Acre and Amazonas, with strong support
from German Development Cooperation. Pilot exercises were carried out in the local authorities of Apui
(Amazonas) and Brasiléa (Acre).
4.2.1 Objectives, Operational Model and Methodological Procedures23
The principal objective of local land use planning is to agree on a division of the territory that allows the
adequate use and also protection of natural resources. More specific objectives are:
to support the political decision makers with information about land use and natural resources
to identify, mitigate, and solve social and environmental conflicts
to suggest articulation strategies and form alliances and networks for improved environmental
control and land management
to strengthen institutional cooperation to help meet the requirements of the process.
To achieve these objectives, in collaboration with its counterparts, the German Development Cooperation
developed an operational model and methodological procedures, which are demonstrated in the following
diagram:
For more information relevant to this chapter, see also the guideline by Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente
(2008).
23
22
Work Intensity
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Time
The participatory planning of local land use involves four phases, each of which involves different work
intensity during the execution period.
The starting point is sound articulation by all the relevant stakeholders. This should establish a common
vision of the expected results of the process, and it should identify the main stakeholders needed to guarantee
solid participation. The operational steps in the articulation phase are as follows:
• Mobilisation of local society: It is important to inform people about the process and its main
objectives in order to guarantee participation. The local administration obviously plays a key role
here. To achieve mobilisation, workshops, information campaigns or visits to the rural areas can be
employed.
• Establishment of a formal agreement between the organisation that will carry out the zoning exercise,
and the local authority. The division of responsibilities should be formalised in a written agreement
with the local administration, and logistical contributions must be defined. It is important that the
local authority asserts its ownership, for example, by nominating a working team and a local
coordinator.
• Creation of a local authority commission for the zoning process: The commission should be formed
by the local authority; its existence is a precondition for the implementation of the zoning process.
The members should represent the public and private sectors, as well as civil society. The
commission is a working group, and its size should not exceed 12 members.
• Formation of partnerships and technical cooperation: The terms should be formalised in case
technical cooperation is necessary.
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• Selection and training of process facilitators: Facilitators should form the technical staff and should
work full time on the zoning process.
• At least five or six facilitators should be involved. They should have experience in moderating events,
technical experience in the relevant areas and topics, and a profound knowledge of both the local
conditions and the local stakeholders.
• Stakeholder workshops: The workshops are intended to analyse critically the existing zones; they
should identify major social and environmental problems and conflicts, and create a common vision
for local development including the priority areas to work on. They must involve the local actors and
promote identification with the process.
The objective of the second diagnosis phase is to gain an understanding of local conditions, in various
respects. This necessitates the following operational steps to create a profile of the local authority area:
Assessment of the existing information and data
Identification of studies to be carried out
Presentation of the results to the stakeholders
To avoid duplicating work, all existing information relevant to the process should be fed into the profiling of
the municipality. This information can be gathered by governmental and non-governmental organisations,
research institutions and projects, or community workshops and meetings. Community meetings are
especially important to take into account societal perceptions of the problems a community faces. Some of
the topics to be discussed with the community are deforestation, the tenure situation, water, production,
infrastructure and conflicts.
If knowledge gaps persist, additional studies can be carried out. All the results from this phase should be
systematised and presented to all the stakeholders. Typical products include:
a local authority profile with social, economic, environmental, cultural, political, and institutional
dimensions
a map of the local authority area
thematic maps covering, for example, land use, tenure structure, deforestation, social infrastructure,
production, soils and vegetation.
The third prognosis phase aims to set indicators, make recommendations and elaborate scenarios, which
should serve as instruments for public administrations to make their policies and programmes more efficient
and effective. One of the most important activities is the depiction of the development approach currently
used by the local authority, and the extrapolation of this as a future scenario. Alternative scenarios of
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sustainable development are also postulated, using indicators for sustainability. These will show how possible
interventions could change the development path. These models should be discussed at length with the
community and the other stakeholders, in order to reach a common vision about the community‟s future.
This process ultimately leads to a pact between all the stakeholders and the elaboration of a local land use
plan.
The final step is the implementation of the plan, including constant evaluation and monitoring.
4.2.2 Local Land Use Planning in Brasiléa (State of Acre)
As was mentioned before, the State of Acre was the first state in the Brazilian Amazon to conduct a complete
macro-zoning process at state level. The first phase was completed in 1999, and involved studies of the state's
natural resources and the environmental situation carried out using maps with a scale of 1:1,000,000. The
second phase (2002-2006) refined this information to a scale of 1:250,000, and addressed topics such as
environment, economy, culture and politics.
In 2004, the state government first expressed its interest in conducting a local land use planning process as a
pilot exercise; the local authority selected was Braziléa, a municipality with high levels of deforestation as well
as substantial forest cover. Braziléa is also a place with high geopolitical significance, as it is located near the
meeting point of Brazil's borders with Peru and Bolivia. Large infrastructural investments are planned here.
Articulation, institutional setting and participation
In the first phase of local land use planning, the stakeholders created a very broad institutional platform,
involving the State Ministry of Environment, the municipal administration of Braziléa, its legislative council,
local civil society organisations, the federal environmental and agricultural research agencies, and the German
Technical Cooperation, represented by GTZ and DED, to name just the more important participants.
The whole planning process followed the methodology described in the previous chapter, with four phases:
articulation, diagnosis, prognosis and implementation. The first, articulation phase involved the following
measures:
creation of a Special Commission for political coordination and a supportive technical advisory
group, with the participation of GTZ
systematisation and analysis of the policies and programmes relevant to land management
formation of a facilitation team
mobilisation of the population and the stakeholders
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preparatory surveys
preparation of workshops.
Diagnosis
In the diagnosis phase, two major products were created:
A document with a detailed profile of Braziléa which included social aspects (population, land tenure,
conflicts, etc.), environmental aspects (climate, soils, vegetation etc.), and economical, political,
institutional and cultural aspects.
Thematic maps with details such as deforestation in protected areas, the progression of deforestation,
watersheds and vegetation, soils, geology, land tenure, protected areas, and land reform settlements.
The appendix includes two of these maps. Map 8 shows deforestation in Brasiléa, which is mainly
concentrated along the national road BR 317. Most of these areas are used for extensive cattle ranching. Map
9 depicts the municipal tenure structure: almost 40% of the territory belongs to protected areas,
approximately 30% are land reform settlements, about 15% is private land, and the rest is public land without
any clear designation.
Prognosis
Different scenarios were prepared based on these results. The scenarios should serve the purpose of
evaluating proposals for land use planning by providing strategic orientation. It is especially important to
identify areas with very high environmental vulnerability, which is related to deforestation. The first scenario24
simulates the continuation of the existing land use pattern in the municipality up to 2041. It is characterized
by the further expansion of extensive cattle ranching to occupy more than 25% of the territory, which is
accompanied by high deforestation rates and territorial fragmentation caused by newly constructed roads.
This scenario would bring highly adverse social and environmental impacts. The loss of forest cover and
biodiversity would endanger the livelihoods of traditional communities, such as rubber-tapping communities,
forcing them into poverty and migration.
The alternative scenario is based on a more intensive and diversified agricultural use of the land, which helps
to deter the expansion of extensive cattle ranching and to preserve the forest. Degraded and deforested areas
can be recovered using sustainable resource management, such as extraction activities or agro forestry
production systems.
24
It can also be referred to as the 'business as usual scenario', see Map 10 in appendix.
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The exercise also identified four areas of high ecological vulnerability, mainly related to the Chico Mendes
Extraction Reserve. With this information at hand, it will be possible to control these areas more strongly.
Recommendations for implementation
The final document contains observations on future interventions, and addresses the following topics:
deforestation and fire management
production
infrastructure
tenure system
social aspects (education, health, etc.).
Finally, the local planning of land use divided the municipal territory into four zones:
a zone for the consolidation of sustainable production: this zone is the primary production area and
it includes the land reform settlements, the areas of cattle ranching and commercial agriculture, and
private forest areas for sustainable forest management
a zone for sustainable forest management and protected areas (public land)
priority areas without clearly designated tenure, recommended for the future creation of new
protected areas
the urban zone.
All the zones are divided into sub-zones, with detailed recommendations made for their future management,
which are based on the alternative development scenario.
Implementation
The stakeholders signed a 'commitment document' to define the form of further cooperation, responsibilities
and obligations. A recent evaluation workshop has also elaborated the next steps in the implementation
process:
Tying land use planning to the creation of a municipal development plan – the municipal
administration is currently working on a general development plan (Plano Diretor) for the town. To
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avoid duplications, the results of the land use planning should be attached to the development plan,
which will then become a municipal law.
Facilitation of access to the results and products of land use planning.
Creation of a sound institutional platform for implementation. This will also be responsible for the
continuous monitoring and evaluation during implementation and for frequent updates of available
data.
Definition of detailed implementation strategies for every zone and sub-zone.
Lessons learned and overall impacts
In recent years, Braziléa has served as an important laboratory for local land use planning in the Amazon
region. With German Development Cooperation support, the State of Acre and the municipality of Braziléa
conducted an 'action learning process' which identified the following impacts and lessons learned:
Land use planning generated a significant amount of valuable information which will enable
sustainable development to be conducted more strategically.
The hotspots of deforestation and the environmentally vulnerable areas were identified, which in the
future will enable the government agencies to introduce command and control measures more
efficiently, and to consolidate the protected areas. Furthermore, it will enable the population to
participate in the monitoring of the natural resources.
The participatory, multi-stakeholder process promoted cooperation between the local, state and
federal governments, which will result in more effective policies at the local level. The participation
of the population helped to find solutions that correspond to the peoples‟ real needs. Networking,
cooperation and participation considerably increased the social capital.
Since the land use planning was conducted as an 'action learning process', it had a capacity
development effect for the local stakeholders. The studies and training programmes – both individual
and institutional – strengthened local planning and implementation capacities and increased the level
of locally available, qualified personnel.
All stakeholders mentioned the prevention of land use conflicts as another important impact of the
process.
The positive impacts and results observed in Braziléa motivated the state government to expand this pilot
experience to other local authorities. The methodology tested in Braziléa will be used again, although some
modifications will probably be made to it, depending on an ongoing appraisal.
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For the sake of similar future interventions, four significant lessons learned can be listed here:
The very complex institutional arrangement, the participation of many stakeholders with conflicting
interests, and the necessity for cooperation and networking, all require professional support and
facilitation skills. Other topics should be prioritised in the future, such as cooperation, organisational
development, and conflict management.
One of the most common bottlenecks in local planning processes is the very weak participation of
local administrations. The lack of ownership prolongs the process and makes it more costly. To
guarantee local ownership, some preparatory work should be undertaken with the local authorities.
One precondition for the process should be that the authorities provide a lot of the available
resources.
The entire process seems to be very 'environment driven'. The conservation of natural resources is
strongly dependent on the future development of the productive sector. Therefore, the integration in
the planning process of public programmes and projects that promote agriculture seems
indispensable.
The land use planning process in Braziléa lasted almost two years. The length of the process was
influenced by various interruptions, operational problems, lack of experience and know-how, and the
lack of proper ownership by the administration. If the methodological adaptations and the
adjustments recommended here are followed, future land use planning processes should be much
faster. For emergency situations, which require rapid responses and interventions, other procedures
should be adopted to guarantee governance over the natural resources. This would require the
development of new methodological approaches.
4.3
Cadastre and Environmental Licensing of Rural Private Properties
As mentioned in Chapter 3.2, a precondition for natural resource governance is the implementation of
Brazilian environmental legislation – above all, its enforcement using a satellite-based licensing system
controlling the mandatory forest reserves on private land. Brazilian forest legislation obliges private, rural land
owners in the Amazon region to maintain forest cover on 80% of their property. Furthermore, riparian
forests, floodplain forests and forest cover on steep mountain slopes are also subject to strict legal protection.
While the first two instruments of land management (macro-zoning and local land use planning) represent a
territorial approach, the environmental licensing system is intended to monitor and control deforestation in
the legally protected 80% of private land, by using remote sensing and a geo-referenced database.
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The idea of a licensing system to combat deforestation was developed in the State of Mato Grosso, where the
NRPP also operated. The system developed there was a combination of three strategic elements25:
Licensing and cadastre: here, the objective is to determine who owns or occupies land and to
establish what can or cannot be deforested
Control: this is considered crucial for stopping deforestation, but controls must be effective and
efficient
Monitoring: this has to take place alongside licensing and control, and should be used to guide them
In this project, 'licensing' meant identifying the owners or occupants as well as the properties and listing the
geographical coordinates of the properties and of the designated protected areas. This implies the need for a
zoning process. The information had to be entered into a database, as the image on the following page
shows.
It is important to note that the regularisation of tenure is not a precondition for the introduction of this
system. Cadastral entries, and the monitoring and control of deforestation can take place, whether the
occupant is legitimate or not. However, it is important that the resulting information is shared with the land
administration agencies, and that licensing is not used as a legal argument by a land grabber in favour of the
land regularisation. The states will join up tenure and environmental cadastres in the future.
Figure: Zoning of a private property in the Amazon Region.
Source: GTZ-Presentation
25
See Ministry of the Environment 2008: 53.
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The impacts of the licensing system on deforestation in Mato Grosso were astonishing. Deforestation
occurring on registered properties decreased from 52,000 hectares (1999) to 14,000 hectares (2002). In 2002,
the results prompted the Federal Ministry of Environment to make environmental licensing obligatory.
However, immediate implementation of the policy was impossible due to a lack of institutional capacities
among the state environmental agencies. It was only in 2003 and 2004 that other states (Rondônia and
Tocantins) began to operate the system. In 2005, all states had taken at least some steps toward implementing
the environmental licensing of private rural land. Despite strong technical and financial support from
German Development Cooperation26, and despite substantial progress, a considerable amount of work has
yet to be done. This mainly involves the establishment of state-wide databases of information detailed at the
necessary scale of 1:100,000.
Some important lessons have been learned from the implementation of the systems:
Before their introduction, it was only possible to calculate deforestation rates for whole territories.
With the cadastre and licensing it became possible to individualise and qualify (legal or illegal) the
procedure.
The system also permits the strategic orientation of environmental control, making it more efficient
and effective. Under earlier conditions, seven controllers needed 15 days to survey four farms. With
the new system, it is now possible for the same team to assess 750 farms in the same time.
In previous systems the state was obliged to obtain the relevant information from the properties. In
more advanced licensing systems, when access to public credits is made conditional, for example, on
the presentation of the license, the claimed owner has to submit the necessary information.
Perhaps the most important element of this measure is accountability – with the levying of
administrative or judicial penalties to counteract widespread impunity. Lessons learned in all the
states clearly show that without a previously established, well functioning system for exacting due
penalties, the whole licensing system – and with it, the effort to combat deforestation on private land
– will fail. Above all in Mato Grosso, the experience showed that, without a quick exaction of
penalties, the traditional sentiment of impunity took hold again and an increase in deforestation
followed. All the investments in technology, staff training, controls etc. were therefore more or less
in vain.
Another important question is what to do with properties where environmental debt was registered
(deforestation of the legally required forest cover for example). Unfortunately, this is the case with
most properties devoted to agriculture, commercial production or cattle ranching. One solution
would be to force the property owners to restore the forest cover through regeneration or active
reforestation. But this is extremely costly and, in many cases, technically impossible. Another more
innovative solution is to create markets for compensation, whereby someone who preserves forest
areas where deforestation would legally be possible, 'sells' this right to compensate for someone else,
26
GTZ worked and is still working in the already mentioned states of Amazonas, Acre, Pará and Rondônia.
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who has already deforested more than permitted. However, this kind of market is still under
construction.
5. Conclusions
This study has demonstrated clearly that there is a relationship between deforestation and the land tenure
structure in the Amazon basin. Therefore, it seems logical that strategies to combat deforestation should also
contain land management measures as an indispensable element of systematic natural resource governance.
Since 1995, German Development Cooperation has been supporting the development and implementation of
land management strategies, operating at different levels of intervention (state, municipal, rural properties).
The products developed are highly relevant for Brazil, and undoubtedly for other countries, too. The positive
development of deforestation rates between 2000 and 2008 in the states where the German-supported NRPP
operated proves this.
Since 2000, Acre has managed to stabilise its deforestation rate at a very low level. Amazonas reversed its
increase of 2003 and has since also maintained stable, low-level rates. A decrease in deforestation rates has
occurred in Pará and Rondônia, from 2004 onwards, although Pará has a very high level in absolute terms
and saw a slight increase between 2007 and 2008. In the face of quite a complex cause-and-effect relationship,
it is not easy to say what concrete contributions the land management strategies have had on these
developments. However, it is undeniable that it has brought some very sound benefits. Yet despite of these
positive results there are still some very serious challenges:
Deforestation on small land parcels: the role of the land reform settlements
In recent years, deforestation statistics have shown a decreasing trend on large land parcels (more than 100
hectares) but an increase on smaller plots (below 50 hectares). While in 2002 40% of deforestation occurred
on large parcels, in 2008 it was only 14%. On the other hand, the rate for smallholdings grew from 24% to
40%27. This means that the measures to combat deforestation have been effective, above all in combating
large-scale deforestation. However, it seems clear that it will be much more difficult to tackle deforestation on
small plots. This means that local land use planning has an important role to play.
Land reform settlements are very important in this context, because their share of deforestation totalled 23%
in 2008. There are a total of 1,804 land reform settlements in the Amazon region, covering 330,000 km2 and
27
Presidência da República 2009: 49.
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home to 370.000 families. 81% of these families live in the State of Pará. The adverse ecological impacts of
land reform in Brazil and alternative strategies to avoid them would be the subject for another very
interesting study.
Land grabbing and tenure regularisation
In spite of the large-scale creation of protected areas, indigenous territories and new land reform settlements,
and despite the fact that the use of enormous areas of public land has now been defined, problems with the
land tenure system and land grabbing still exist (as was pointed out in a document recently released by the
Brazilian Presidency28):
There is a lack of controls over notary offices, which are still willing to register illegal land
transactions.
Problems exist with the examination of land titles and their legality.
Squatting is still being promoted by politicians before elections, with the promise of quick
regularisation.
Law 11,952 (Former MP 458)
This last point leads back to the discussion of Law 11,952 and its possible impacts. Even though the
objectives of the law, to establish more clarity in the land tenure system, are laudable, this study has described
its weaknesses. Tenure regularisation without any reference to macro-zoning may lead to land regularisation
in regions where the creation of new protected areas is planned, or where restrictions in use, such as in the
'Controlled Zone', were defined. Another important question is whether it makes sense to distribute land
concessions if the licensing system is still under construction in most of the states, as it will be impossible to
monitor adherence to the proposed environmental requirements.
Systematic approach
The study has shown that deforestation can only be stopped using an integrated approach combining
different strategies, which are systematically linked to each other and to natural resource governance. This
implies the necessity for federal, state and municipal governments to cooperate; and a proper definition is
needed of what positive and negative incentives to use to control the exploitation of natural resources.
Research must still be done into the most effective and efficient combination of incentives. In the future,
greater consideration must be given to the governance of resources and the integration of the productive
28
Presidência da República 2009: 47.
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sector; the whole system seems to be overly 'environment-driven'. Good strategies must be prepared for the
zones of consolidated use, while economically and ecologically sustainable production systems should be
promoted. Cooperation with projects and programmes that support economic rural development is a
precondition for success.
Land management and climate change
Finally, the correlation between land management and climate change is important to note. The land
management strategies used to combat deforestation are the same as the strategies used to reduce emissions
from deforestation and degradation (REDD). They are therefore highly relevant for climate change.
Furthermore, these are the first approaches to integrate strategies of adaptation to climate change in the local
land use planning. This might provide another very important topic for further research. In this respect,
Brazil is a very interesting case, and lessons learned here are relevant for other countries, too. Mozambique
has shown special interest in this matter.
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Ministério do Meio Ambiente (MMA): A grilagem de terras públicas na Amazônia brasileira. Brasília 2006.
Ministerio do Meio Ambiente (MMA): Sistematização de Experiências Selecionadas do SPRN: o Fortalecimento
Institucional, o ZEE e o SLAPR. Brasilia 2008.
Presidência da República: Plano de Ação para a Prevenção e o Controle do Desmatamento da Amazônia Legal. Segunda
Fase (Versão Preliminar). Brasilia 2009.
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Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente: Ordenamento Territorial Local do Município de Brasiléa. Rio Branco 2007.
Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente: OTL – Ordenamento Territorial Local. Guia para a Elaboração do
Ordenamento Territorial Local no Estado do Acre. Rio Branco 2008.
Soares Filho, B. et al.: Modelling Conservation in the Amazon Basis. In Nature, Vol. 440/23.3.2006: p. 520523.
Souza, Conceiçao: Cartilha de Ordenamento Territorial Local: A Experiência do Municipio de Brasiléia-AC. Rio
Branco 2007.
Trusen, C.: Erarbeitung eines Konzepts für das zukünftige TZ-Engagement im brasilianischen Bundesstaat Pará. Studie im
Auftrag der GFA/GTZ. Belém 2006.
World Bank: Land Policies for Growth and Poverty Reduction. Washington 2003.
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Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Appendix
Map 1: Legal Amazonia
Source: Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística - IBGE
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 2: Geography of Landholding Uncertainty in the Amazon
Source: Brito et. al. 2009: 2
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 3: Scenarios of Deforestation until 2050
Source: Soares Filho, B. et al.: Modelling Conservation in the Amazon Basis. In: Nature, Vol. 440/23.3.2006, S. 520-523
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 4: Macro Zoning of Land Use in the State of Amazonas
Source: State Government of Amazonas
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 5: Land Tenure and the Distribution of Public Land
Source: State Government of Amazonas
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 6: Protected Areas Planned and Created in the State of Amazonas
Source: State Government of Amazonas
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 7: Localization of Braziléa
Source: Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente 2007: 45
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 8: Deforestation in Braziléa until 2004
Source: Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente 2007: 88
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 9: Land Tenure in Braziléa
Source: Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente 2007: 61
Private Land
Land Reform Settlements
Protected Areas
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 10: „Business as Usual Scenario‟ with Land Use Pattern and Deforestation in 2011, 2021, 2031, 2041
The yellow areas are used for cattle ranching.
Source: Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente 2007: 76
Strategies for sustainable local land management
Part 2: Brazil
Map 11: “Alternative Scenario” with Land Use Pattern and Deforestation in 2011, 2021, 2031, 2041
The yellow areas are used for cattle ranching.
Source: Secretaria de Estado de Meio Ambiente 2007: 77
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