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The Ecological Economic Zoning (EEZ) is an environmental management tool established in the National Environmental Policy (PNMA) and present in all states of Brazil. Since the 1990s, it has been implemented in Brazil; however, the attempts at implementation and the results obtained so far do not provide evidence of its effectiveness. Thus, this article seeks to understand the implementation of EEZ in Tocantins by analyzing the perceptions of local actors through the Collective Subject Discourse (CSD) method. The conclusion is that EEZ in Tocantins has not been implemented. Among the identified causes, institutional factors such as low administrative capacity, governance, and "political will" associated with the disconfiguration of its normative character prevail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to report an interview of Professor Lúcio José Sobral da Cunha (University of Coimbra) to Professor Jorge Luís de Oliveira Pinto Filho (UFERSA) on the contemporary environmental issue and the role of the University in this debate. For this, the interview was conducted in Coimbra, Portugal during a Post Doctoral Internship of Professor Jorge Pinto Filho under the guidance of Professor Lúcio Cunha. Initially, it addressed the following aspects: environmental and society relations; the environmental crisis; environmental debates; environmental policies and; the dimensions of environmental management and its operationalization. Later, he praised the themes: multidisciplinary research; the role of the university in the 21st century and; emerging university and regional development. Therefore, the interview showed the contemporary environmental issue and the role of the University in this debate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this technical report is to present an intervention project to define an environmental policy for a industry of styrofoam products, to assist in obtaining the certification of ISO 14001. The study is important for the company, because it has received the certification of Quality Management System (QMS) which is the first step towards a possible implementation of ISO. Therefore, all the study and data necessary for the implementation of ISO 14001 will be already gathered and available through this work. The method used in this research was action research, and the data was collected by nonstructured interviews with the two company's directors. By raising the environmental management measures that gives support for the implementation of ISO 14001, it was presented a implementing proposal of environmental policy and planning. With this, all required administrative and environmental management actions for the company to obtain ISO 14001 certification have been identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The business sector is promoting a change in its management model, since the early 90s, when it took a positive attitude toward the environment. Thus, environmental issues have become part of the strategic planning of organizations due to stricter regulations and to society's demands for greater environmental responsibility. Therefore, this study aims to identify and analyze environmental practices adopted by companies of this sector in Goiás and to seek answers to questions related to the factors that can contribute to the creation of competitive advantages within these organizations. Organizations involved in that study are labeled A, B, C and D. This research has used the fundamentals of qualitative and exploratory approach and it can be characterized as a field research. In the growing and processing of sugar cane, certainly negative impacts to the environment are still present. However, adoption of actions mentioned here, as the search for the conservation of soil and vegetation, replacing the burned by harvesters, the rational use of chemicals, the recycling of waste in the production process (such as power generation through bagasse sugarcane), among others, point out benefits to business sector and the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the area of environmental management, the environmental consulting and advisory services stand out as promising segments. The demand for this line of work has grown due to the Brazilian Environmental Legislation to have one of the most elaborate in the world and the rigorous control by environmental agencies, for companies to comply with the requirements of the law. The studies found that it is still a small number of companies looking for consulting or advisory services in the municipal studied. There was greater planning in relation to environmental issues, and many organizations consider the issues in their budgets and the service sector is one that seeks to identify further opportunities to reduce costs facing the environment. Still, as the performance of the environmental manager noted that there is a resistance to the incorporation of actions which minimize the impacts of its projects on the environment and the lack of information on environmental management systems and the performance of professionals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study deals with the environmental regularization of mining activities in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, where such activities exhibit prominent economic, social and environmental importance. The main environmental rules and data from the licensing system are analyzed, focusing on the post-licensing stage, when the system is partially hampered due to insufficient technical assessment and nonsystematic inspection of the impacting activities by the environmental authorities. A preliminary assessment of the changes introduced in the environmental system in the last five years is also made, and comprise: the regional decentralization of the licensing system - and of the environmental management as a whole -, with eight regional offices, and the institution of the declaratory authorization for environmental operation of minor enterprises with potentially less degrading activities, in substitution of the traditional licensing system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present essay offers a sociological panoramic view of the development of modern environmental policy, of the new environmental movements and their paradigms, as well as a discourse-ethics (diskursethisch) reflection about the problematic relationship between the human being and nature. This reflection will connect the issue to an empirical vision of the problem as shown by the agents of environmental policies (to be described), systematize the ethical element of the different perspectives and will also provide a foundation, within the realm of discourse ethics, for a social approach to nature based on responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]