O direito do uso da água dos atingidos pela Hidrelétrica de Balbina em Presidente Figueiredo – AM

Abstract

This study is dedicated to the critical analysis of the socio-environmental impacts caused by large infrastructure projects in the Amazon, using the Balbina Hydroelectric Plant (UHE) on the Uatumã River, Amazonas, as the main paradigmatic case study. The thesis starts from the premise that the relentless pursuit of energy security in Brazil resulted in the implementation of projects with evident social unviability, imposing disproportionate costs on traditional riverside populations (ribeirinhos), whose way of life is entirely linked to the aquatic ecosystem. The investigation details how the construction of Balbina, which resulted in the flooding of approximately 3,000 km2 of forest, caused profound and irreversible damage. The riverside communities suffered the destruction of their subsistence base – fishing, extractive activities, and floodplain agriculture (agricultura de várzea) – and the forced displacement of families. A violation of the principle of the social function of water was found, as economic and energy interests superseded the maintenance of the ecological balance essential for the communities' lives and the human right to water. Field research with residents of Vila de Balbina and downstream communities (such as Céu e Mar and São José do Uatumã) validated the losses, especially the alteration of the fluvial dynamics (extreme seasonality), which disrupted the traditional way of life. The central problem identified is the inadequacy of the Brazilian environmental licensing model (EIA/RIMA), which proved to be excessively focused on the ecological dimension, relegating the social aspect and the cultural environment (meio ambiente cultural) to a secondary and non-decisive role. This regulatory gap allowed projects like Balbina to be implemented without the proper predictive analysis of human impacts. To remedy this failure and ensure social justice, the thesis culminates in the legislative proposal for the creation of the Social Impact Study (EIS) and the Social Impact Report (RIS) as autonomous and mandatory instruments of the National Environmental Policy. The EIS is defended as the essential tool to transform social viability into a formally decisive criterion for granting licenses, ensuring that economically profitable but socially destructive projects are barred. The institution of the EIS/RIS aims to effectively apply the principles of precaution and prevention, guaranteeing that the analysis of socioeconomic, migratory, and cultural structures occurs before the damages materialize. Furthermore, the RIS, by requiring transparency and accessible language, reinforces the principle of social participation, guaranteeing the right of the affected community to intervene in the process. In conclusion, the work points out that the reform of the licensing system, through the inclusion of the EIS and the RIS, is crucial for Brazilian development to align with the imperatives of social justice and sustainability, correcting the historical debt owed to the traditional peoples of the Amazon.