Public Hearings and the Environmental Licensing of Nuclear Installations

This book aims to demonstrate how the use of nuclear technology has contributed to increased concern about the environment, arousing interest throughout society. Environmental licensing requires the preparation of an Environmental Impact Study (EIS) and an Environmental Impact Report (EIR), which presents the conclusions of the EIS in an objective manner. The public hearing is the main mechanism for direct participation by the population, exposing the characteristics of the project and the content of the EIS/EIR to the public, since public acceptance of a nuclear project is a major source of conflict due to the potential risk involved. The public hearings are organised by the project developers following the guidelines proposed by IBAMA, the body responsible for licensing these facilities. The evaluation of this model highlights the use of technology, such as social media, which optimises the numerous processes, promotes the digital inclusion of the surrounding community and suggests that the roadmap drawn up by IBAMA should be reformulated for the environmental licensing of nuclear facilities.