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April/2018 |
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ENVIRONMENT |
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Welcome to the Environment Newsletter, a
publication prepared by our
Environmental Law team.
In this edition:
Brazilian
Federal Government regulates sale of
biofuels' low carbon credits and RenovaBio
Committee is operational
State of
Rio Grande do Sul: new rules on
environmental licensing
Federal
District regulates special cases subjected
to environmental permit and environmental
licensing exemption
State
Government of Rio de Janeiro regulates the
conversion of environmental fines into green
investments
Superior
Court of Justice: Filling of Environmental
Class Action interrupts statute of
limitation for individual claims |
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Brazilian Federal Government regulates sale of
biofuels' low carbon credits and RenovaBio
Committee is operational |
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Ana Luci Grizzi & Leonardo Freire |
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On March 19, 2018,
Brazilian Government enacted Federal Decree
No 9,308 that regulates the mandatory caps
of biofuel’s low carbon credits (“CBios”)
which fuel distributors shall comply with,
as stated by the Brazilian Policy for
Biofules (“RenovaBio”). In practice, the
regulation is the kick off to structure the
CBIOs market. Moreover, RenovaBio Committee
(responsible for monitoring the biofuel
market) is already operational with schedule
of meetings arranged until May 22, 2018 when
the mandatory caps should be proposed for
Government’s analysis.
Read our Client Alert on this matter. |
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State of Rio
Grande do Sul: new rules on environmental
licensing |
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Daniela Diniz & Lucas Boechat |
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On March, 2018, new
rules were published regulating the
environmental licensing in the State of Rio
Grande do Sul.
The Department of Environment and
Sustainable Development – SEMA, the State
Foundation for Environmental Protection –
FEPAM and the Department of Agriculture,
Livestock and Irrigation – SEAPI, published
Joint Ordinance No. 04/2018, establishing
new requirements and technical conditions
for the environmental licensing and
registration of establishments that sell
pesticides, its components and others. The
Ordinance is applicable to (i)
establishments that have already requested a
Preliminary License that is yet to be
issued; (ii) licensing processes started
after the present Ordinance entered into
force – new establishments and
establishments to be regularized.
The State Council of the Environment -
CONSEMA, published resolution CONSEMA No.
372/2018, establishing criteria for the
definition of power to perform environmental
licensing: State or Municipal. The main
criteria to define the empowered entity are
its size and polluting potential. The
Resolution also sets forth transition rules
for the licensing processes already ongoing,
as stated by Complementary Law No. 140/2011. |
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Federal
District regulates special cases subjected
to environmental permit and environmental
licensing exemption |
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Julia Ferreira & Lucas Boechat |
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| On March
1, 2018, the Environmental Counsel of
Distrito Federal (“CONAM”) published
Resolutions CONAM No 9 and 10, of December
20, 2017, that respectively regulates the
special cases subject to environmental
permit and the exemption of environmental
licensing procedure. As per stated by the
Resolutions the temporary activities and
enterprises deemed as low environmental
impact shall not depend on ordinary
environmental licensing procedure, being
subjected to a single permit or exemption of
environmental licensing obligation. The
entitlement to environmental permit or the
exemption of environmental licensing do not
dismiss the entrepreneur to comply with
others environmental obligation. |
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State Government of Rio de Janeiro
regulates the conversion of environmental
fines into green investments |
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Leonardo Freire & Daniela Geib |
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| On March 19, 2018,
State Government of Rio de Janeiro published
Decree No. 46,268 regulating the legal
system for conversion of environmental fines
into green investments, according to State
Law No. 3.467/2000. According to the Decree,
whoever is interest to apply for the
conversion of environmental fines, shall
choose the: (i) direct conversion, by
assuming the responsibility to execute, by
their own means, the environmental
investments subject to the conversion of
fine; (ii). indirect conversion, by
sponsoring one of the State Environment
Institute’s (INEA) pre-selects projects.
Depending on which type of conversion is
selected, the interested party is entitled
to a discount over the consolidated value of
the fine. |
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Superior Court of Justice: Filling
of Environmental Class Action interrupts the
statute of limitation for individual claims
arising from ricochet damages |
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Leonardo Freire & Lucas Boechat |
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The Third
Panel of the Superior Court of Justice
considered valid the understanding that the
filing of environmental class action
interrupts the statute of limitation for
individual claims arising from ricochet
damages. Based on this understanding, the
Panel understood that the failure to
immediate file an individual claim for
indemnification due to environmental
ricochet damages cannot be understood as
party’s inertia or lack of will, thus
subjected to a statute of limitation, but
instead as a consenting and valid attitude
towards the collective lawsuit system.
(Superior Court of Justice, Third Panel,
Special Appeal No 1641167, Reporting Justice
Nancy Andrighi, Published on the Official
Gazette on March 20, 2018) |
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| The materials
provided herein are for general
communication and information purposes only.
Our environmental team is available to
provide further clarifications and legal
advices on such matters. |
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