Gestão de recursos hídricos nos países da Bacia Amazônica: conflitos legislativos

Abstract

The issue of water on this planet is often present in many discussions about the environment. The way of using water resources, who uses them and to which end, are issues that deserve special attention as, since the Stockholm Conference of 1972 and hence through these last four decades, these resources are treated in a special manner, taken as finite and endowed of economical value. In this context, the management of water resources in the Amazon Basin begins to be guided by the principles of environmental law, which state that water should be an accessible natural resource to all peoples in order to supply their vital needs. Likewise, water resource policies are moving towards the principle that users should have direct participation on protection, conservation, and recovery of water resources. Furthermore, these policies take into account principles of precaution and prevention in order to keep water resources at acceptable supply levels and standard of quality. In order to promote the direct application of water policies, Amazon Basin countries have produced laws that incorporate some sort of management instruments. A look into the legal realm of water resources of Brazil, Venezuela, Peru, Colombia, Equador, Bolivia, and Guiana shows that in the Amazon Basin there are diverse water resource management systems, fact that generates management conflicts related to the homogeneity of decision and results.