Improving Public Contracting Processes of Socio-Environmental Studies for Brazil's Land Transportation Projects

The report analyzes the contracting of Technical, Economic, and Environmental Feasibility Studies (EVTEA) and Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) for federal land transportation projects in the Amazon. It finds a significant lack of transparency in how these studies are selected, assessed, and approved, as well as a lack of clarity in budget allocations. Analysis of EIA budgets for the Ferrogrão railroad and highway BR-364 shows that over 50% of funds are spent on diagnostic analysis, while only 6% are allocated to risk assessment and mitigation measures. The authors recommend defining clearer selection criteria, establishing upfront budget allocations, and introducing a 'pre-viability phase' to shift diagnostic analysis earlier in the project life cycle.

• Public contracting processes for socio-environmental studies lack transparency, which prevents civil society and academics from monitoring the selection, assessment, and approval of environmental studies.
• Public notices for EVTEA and EIA contracting often lack clear criteria, making it difficult to understand how budgets are allocated across different socio-environmental components.
• In the analyzed EIA budgets for the Ferrogrão railroad and highway BR-364, the majority of funding is dedicated to environmental diagnoses, while a very small fraction is spent on impact assessment and mitigation.
• There is an opportunity to move socio-environmental diagnostic analysis to earlier project phases, such as the EVTEA or a proposed new pre-viability phase, to improve the quality of projects and unburden the environmental licensing process.
• Analysis of EVTEA notices revealed that deliverables, payment percentages for environmental components, and deadlines were often not specified, and price caps for PMI (Expression of Interest) contracts were frequently unavailable in public notices.

APA

Chiavari, J., Antonaccio, L., & Barros, A. C. (2021). Improving Public Contracting Processes of Socio-Environmental Studies for Brazil's Land Transportation Projects. Climate Policy Initiative. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/REL-Improving-public-contracting-processes-of-socioenvironmental-studies-for-Brazils-land-transportation-projects.pdf

Chicago

Chiavari, Joana, Luiza Antonaccio, and Ana Cristina Barros. Improving Public Contracting Processes of Socio-Environmental Studies for Brazil's Land Transportation Projects. Climate Policy Initiative, 2021. https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/REL-Improving-public-contracting-processes-of-socioenvironmental-studies-for-Brazils-land-transportation-projects.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Chiavari |first1=Joana |last2=Antonaccio |first2=Luiza |last3=Barros |first3=Ana Cristina |title=Improving Public Contracting Processes of Socio-Environmental Studies for Brazil's Land Transportation Projects |publisher=Climate Policy Initiative |date=February 2021 |url=https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/REL-Improving-public-contracting-processes-of-socioenvironmental-studies-for-Brazils-land-transportation-projects.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{chiavari2021improving, author = {Chiavari, Joana and Antonaccio, Luiza and Barros, Ana Cristina}, title = {{Improving Public Contracting Processes of Socio-Environmental Studies for Brazil's Land Transportation Projects}}, institution = {Climate Policy Initiative}, year = {2021}, month = feb, url = {https://www.climatepolicyinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/REL-Improving-public-contracting-processes-of-socioenvironmental-studies-for-Brazils-land-transportation-projects.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }