Social participation and setbacks in the protection of restinga vegetation in Brazil in the period between 1965 and 2021

Restingas are located all along the Brazilian coast, playing a crucial role in protecting coastal cities from extreme weather events. Threats to this ecosystem have intensified with the dismantling of environmental legislation and regulatory bodies, such as the National Environmental Council (CONAMA). This paper investigates the implications of the change in the composition of CONAMA and the effects on the legal protection of the restinga vegetation. The data were obtained through research of documental sources and legislation, collected between March 2020 and May 2021. The advances and setbacks in the legal protection of the restinga vegetation were identified from 1965 to 2021, with the Federal Law 4,771/1965 as the historical framework. The data collected was analyzed based on fifteen key principles of Ecosystem-Based Management. Social participation in CONAMA was compromised with the edition of Federal Decree 9,806/2019, which reduced the number of full councilors from 108 to 23, being restricted to ministries, confederations, a representative of the Federal Public Prosecutor, and a representative of society. After the restructuring of the advisors, the CONAMA Resolution 500/2020 was approved, revoking the CONAMA Resolution 303/2002, protecting the restinga within 300 meters from the high tide line. The subversion of the democratic principle of popular participation generated a loss of legal protection in the restinga vegetation, moving Brazil away from the commitments established in international conventions, besides bringing risks to the conservation of fragile, dynamic, and unstable environments.