In 2000, Brazil consolidated several different laws and regulations addressing protected areas into a single regulatory framework, the National System of Nature Conservation Areas (or SNUC, its acronym in Portuguese). Until this consolidation, there were several different laws, each one dealing with a different management category. While putting the new coherent regulatory framework in place, the 2000 legislation also revoked the old laws. The establishment of specially protected areas is the constitutional mandate of the government at all levels: Federal, State, and Municipal.
The creation of protected areas did not always adhere to uniform technical or scientific criteria. This led to the existence of more than 100 different categories of protected areas, and the particular management objectives were not always clear. This complicated the recognition and systematisation at the national level of the various protected areas.
The particular importance of creating the National System of Nature Conservation Areas is in the definition, uniformity, and consolidation of criteria for establishing and managing these areas. These various considerations are essential for planning and implementing the National Protected Areas Policy by the Ministry of the Environment, the main body in charge of coordinating the system. As such, the uniform national approach provides a much-needed integration of what had formerly been impervious systems. It is expected that this integration will improve coordination among the Federal, State, and Municipal governments in the management of protected areas.
For more information, see http://www.mma.gov.br or contact larissa.godoy@mma.gov.br, maria-carolina.hazin@mma.gov.br, or raquel.breda@mma.gov.br