The phenomenon of combining defense and environmental preoccupations under
one roof has been studied by Ikeshima, to whom the BRICS countries (Brazil,
Russia, India, China and South Africa) have awaken to a sense of maritime security,
while looking after the sustainable exploitation of marine resources.
147
In Brazil, an illustration of such combined efforts is the design of the Blue
Amazon Management System (SISGAAZ), for the permanent monitoring of waters
under national jurisdiction for all sorts of purposes, including defense and environmental conservation ones.
148 The SISGAAZ was created by Decree no. 12.598/
2012. Although the Program’s name includes the phrase “Blue Amazon”, the
SISGAAZ covers the Brazilian jurisdictional waters and the international waters
under the country’s responsibility for search and rescue operations. However, the
system experienced significant hindrances, mainly related to investment cuts, which
prevents forecasts of an implementation date. In fact, up to now, only the stage of
designing the Program was concluded, with the remaining two stages—contracting
and developing the system—halted until further ado. Another example are the
country’s marine protected areas, which can also be designed to serve both ways,
thus keeping maritime powers away from conservation zones.
149
Yet, until now, most of the programs and plans for the integrated management of
coastal and marine environments have been directed mainly to the prevention of
degradation of strictly coastal environments.
150 It is undeniable that coastal ecosystems, such as mangroves and shallow reef corals, are under significant stress due to
pressure from multiple sources like land- and port-based pollution, excessive tourism, continental shelf mining and exploitation activities. Those are reasons strong
enough for having conservation efforts of coastal areas given priority, what does not
mean, however, that the rest of the marine environment under national jurisdiction,
namely deep-sea ones, should be neglected. Integrated management policies and
laws for the ocean owe their effectiveness to the holistic thinking of the marine
environments, as has been highlighted in previous studies.
151 When it comes to
deep-sea activities, the popular motto of “out of sight, out of mind” should be fought
vehemently, as the continental shelf and the Area are prone to be the last frontiers of
anthropogenic economic exploitation.
Another problem identified in this research refers to the link forced by the
Brazilian Navy between safety of navigation measures and environmental conservation, a rationale according to which measures taken for increasing navigational
147 Ikeshima (2011), p. 7.
148 See Düring (2015) online.
149 Further detail on the Brazilian marine protected areas in Chap. 10.
150 The main environmental objectives within the Blue Amazon relate to: recovering the harmful
effects of pollution, revitalizing marine urban areas, valuing the natural landscape, in order to
develop new activities, such as ecotourism and environmental education, and to maintain high
standards of marine environmental quality. See Marinha do Brasil, Amazônia Azul, Vertente
Ambiental, available at: https://www.marinha.mil.br/content/vertente-ambiental. Accessed
12 April 2020.
151 See generally Boyes and Elliott (2014).
288
9 The Environmental Dimension of the “Brazilian Blue...
one roof has been studied by Ikeshima, to whom the BRICS countries (Brazil,
Russia, India, China and South Africa) have awaken to a sense of maritime security,
while looking after the sustainable exploitation of marine resources.
147
In Brazil, an illustration of such combined efforts is the design of the Blue
Amazon Management System (SISGAAZ), for the permanent monitoring of waters
under national jurisdiction for all sorts of purposes, including defense and environmental conservation ones.
148 The SISGAAZ was created by Decree no. 12.598/
2012. Although the Program’s name includes the phrase “Blue Amazon”, the
SISGAAZ covers the Brazilian jurisdictional waters and the international waters
under the country’s responsibility for search and rescue operations. However, the
system experienced significant hindrances, mainly related to investment cuts, which
prevents forecasts of an implementation date. In fact, up to now, only the stage of
designing the Program was concluded, with the remaining two stages—contracting
and developing the system—halted until further ado. Another example are the
country’s marine protected areas, which can also be designed to serve both ways,
thus keeping maritime powers away from conservation zones.
149
Yet, until now, most of the programs and plans for the integrated management of
coastal and marine environments have been directed mainly to the prevention of
degradation of strictly coastal environments.
150 It is undeniable that coastal ecosystems, such as mangroves and shallow reef corals, are under significant stress due to
pressure from multiple sources like land- and port-based pollution, excessive tourism, continental shelf mining and exploitation activities. Those are reasons strong
enough for having conservation efforts of coastal areas given priority, what does not
mean, however, that the rest of the marine environment under national jurisdiction,
namely deep-sea ones, should be neglected. Integrated management policies and
laws for the ocean owe their effectiveness to the holistic thinking of the marine
environments, as has been highlighted in previous studies.
151 When it comes to
deep-sea activities, the popular motto of “out of sight, out of mind” should be fought
vehemently, as the continental shelf and the Area are prone to be the last frontiers of
anthropogenic economic exploitation.
Another problem identified in this research refers to the link forced by the
Brazilian Navy between safety of navigation measures and environmental conservation, a rationale according to which measures taken for increasing navigational
147 Ikeshima (2011), p. 7.
148 See Düring (2015) online.
149 Further detail on the Brazilian marine protected areas in Chap. 10.
150 The main environmental objectives within the Blue Amazon relate to: recovering the harmful
effects of pollution, revitalizing marine urban areas, valuing the natural landscape, in order to
develop new activities, such as ecotourism and environmental education, and to maintain high
standards of marine environmental quality. See Marinha do Brasil, Amazônia Azul, Vertente
Ambiental, available at: https://www.marinha.mil.br/content/vertente-ambiental. Accessed
12 April 2020.
151 See generally Boyes and Elliott (2014).
288
9 The Environmental Dimension of the “Brazilian Blue...