Environmental Licensing

Environmental licensing is carried out in such a way as to ensure the proper analysis of all studies and reports developed and the prompt assistance to the competent environmental agencies. The studies and monitoring are developed by experts, including consulting companies, research centers and universities.

How does it work?

Environmental licensing for a new development is performed in three stages. The first, called Preliminary License, is responsible for recognizing the environmental feasibility of the venture, i.e.: it ensures that the prior conception of the venture in interaction with the environment is also environmentally sustainable. In order to obtain this license, the company presents to the environmental agency the Environmental Impact Study (EIA); the Environmental Impact Report (EIR), which is a document that summarizes, in a clear and objective manner, the information from the Environmental Impact Study, facilitating an understanding; and the holding of a public hearing.

The Installation License is the second stage. With this license the company is authorized to implement the venture in the manner of the documentation delivered to the environmental agency. Among the documents presented to the environmental agencies is the Environmental Control Plan or Basic Environmental Plan where the projects, programs and environmental actions that the company will execute during the construction and operation of the venture are detailed.

The third stage of the environmental licensing process is the Operating License receipt. This license is the permit for the operation of the venture. Its issuance occurs upon proof of execution of mitigation, compensation and control actions of environmental impacts resulting from the implementation of the venture. This proof is made with periodic presentations of reports initiated after the issuance of the Installation License. The approval of such reports means that the impacts related to the physical, biotic and socioeconomic environments have received the appropriate treatment, considering the best techniques and attention to the affected population, animals, vegetation, water courses, among others.

Previous ventures to environmental legislation

The ventures that were built before the Brazilian environmental legislation have a different environmental license procedure, since the impacts resulting from the implementation have already occurred. Therefore, the environmental license issued is the Corrective Operation License.

In order to obtain this license, an Environmental Control Report is prepared presenting the actions taken by the entrepreneur to reduce environmental impacts resulting from the operation of the venture. The Environmental Control Plan is also delivered, in which the projects, programs and environmental actions to be carried out during the license’s validity period are detailed.

Renewal of environmental licenses

All environmental licenses are valid for a specified period. As the validity ends, the Environmental Performance Assessment Report or the Environmental Performance Report are presented, in the case of Operation Licenses and Corrective Operation Licenses, in which the maintenance of environmental actions developed to minimize, compensate and control the environmental impacts resulting from the operation of the enterprise is proven.

Cemig, within the environmental licensing process, makes the Environmental Impact Study (EIA) and its respective Environmental Impact Report (RIMA) available to the population.

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