GEO Brasil - UNEP

territorial dynamics and the environment
the state of environment in Brazil
Brazilian Federation
The restructuring of the constitutional
framework legitimises the deep transformation
that occurred within the internal limits of the
national political framework in the last decade
In 1940, there were 1,574 municipalities In the
year 2000, the number of municipalities reached
5,507 The changes that took place along
municipal borders make it clear that it is urgent
to outline a new political map for Brazil is clear
(Map 4 - Municipal Bords 1940 - 2000)
The last constitutional charter certainly made
municipalities take on multiple responsibilities
when it legitimised the increase in municipal
power in its jurisdiction This made the
municipality an independent infrastate agency
goes beyond the urban centre The new
territorial dimension of municipalities and also
their resources and economic and
environmental potential create new realities to
be considered
The municipality finally became a defined entity
in terms of national public law and
consequently a consolidated infrastate agency
for the Union and States It then took on
numerous responsibilities regarding the
regulation of the use of territory, especially in
the environmental field These attributes are
shared by the Union and States
in the promulgation of the Federal Constitution of 1988 From then
on, the principle of power decentralisation was established, making it
possible for legal mechanisms to be used for the consolidation of the
federative division of the national territory
Currently, federative entities are no longer limited to 26 States and
one Federal District This was a consequence of the politicaladministrative
division that history outlined in the national territory
In addition, there are 5,561 municipalities that are relatively
autonomous and share the agreement that currently supports the
Environmental legislation has added new items
to the Brazilian public agenda These issues
concern the limits on federal, state and
municipal responsibility over the use of the
territory and its natural resources
It should be noted that the same legislation
that embraced the project for the
decentralisation of power simultaneously
increased the means for the creation of another
division in the national political sphere This
division comprises Indigenous Lands and
Conservation Units, whose implementation in
the territory also strengthens the role of civil
society in local management
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