Between profits and impacts: the polluter-pays principle in oil and gas environmental licensing and the petrodependence of northern Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

 This paper is a theoretical study with a qualitative approach, utilizing a literature review and document analysis to investigate how the emphasis on the polluter-pays principle in the Federal Environmental Licensing of offshore oil and gas ventures (2010–2018) relates to the perpetuation of petrodependence in the Norte Fluminense region, amid pressures from the developing economic system. The article highlights the contradictions within the licensing process, which seeks to mediate economic development and the interests of affected communities in the region, focusing primarily on the city of Campos dos Goytacazes, which was for decades the largest oil producer in Brazil. The results indicate that oil and gas exploitation in the region upholds a dependent economic structure marked by neocolonial contexts, resulting in unequal socio-environmental impacts. Traditional communities, such as artisanal fishing groups, bear the brunt of this exploitation, while the economic benefits remain largely inaccessible to the broader population.