Grandes barragens e danos ambientais de larga escala: necessidade de uma política pública específica

the need for a specific public policy

Abstract

The collapse of mining dams of the companies Samarco and Vale, drew attention to the precarious state of dam safety in Brazil and in the world. The ecological, personal, and economic damage caused by the rupture of such equipment and the failure of the civil liability model in force in Brazil to deal with such situations were evident and demonstrated the need for new legal mechanisms. The article, after analyzing the situation of dams in Brazil, suggests the adoption of a new legal parameter, which is the definition of large-scale environmental damage that deserves a different legal treatment from the one currently used in environmental matters. As demonstrated in the article, economic activities that potentially cause large-scale environmental damage must be compelled to contribute to a compensation fund that can provide a faster solution to the satisfaction of the victims' rights. On the other hand, when dealing with large-scale environmental damage, civil liability mechanisms must adopt not only a compensation approach, but also a punitive one, as is developed in the article. Finally, the article argues for the need for a broad review of the principles of civil liability for large-scale environmental damage.