Fernanda Rezende Martins*
Translation: Ligia Payão Chizolini
The change in the relationship between humans and nature over time highlighted humanity's ability not only to understand the environment it inhabits but also to transform it in its favor, subjecting it to impacts and risks that threaten all life on Earth – including that of its own species. This is because, especially after the 15th century, the constant pursuit of social wealth production began to be accompanied by the social production of risks and impacts, which, in the face of globalization, are no longer restricted to the place where they were generated (GIDDENS, 2002, p. 14).
As a result, the environment began to be viewed as a machine made up of distinct and measurable parts, excluding and ignoring qualitative properties, in order to describe nature in mathematical terms. This emphasis, over centuries, overlooked the importance of many environmental properties, reducing the relationship with nature to a mere economic and exploitative issue, marked by intense extractivism for commercial purposes (CAPRA; MATTEI, 2018). In this sense, François Ost (1995) states that the human vs. nature relationship not only became "anthropomorphized" but also "economized."
It is within this context that the climate crisis emerges, with its main feature being the undeniable increase in Earth's temperature due to anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG). In light of this, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United Nations body that assesses climate change, has been demonstrating the need for an effective reduction in the use of fossil fuels (IPCC, 2022). To this end, decarbonizing production sectors through sustainable alternatives is crucial, requiring significant changes in the exploitation of natural resources for a low-carbon energy transition.
As a result, the mining sector is one of the major areas affected by the demand driven by the energy transition. Although the activity itself is not considered the largest contributor to GHG emissions, the deforestation of large areas for the installation of mining projects is significant. So much so that mining projects can significantly increase forest loss at a distance of up to 70 km from the mines (SONTER et al., 2017).
This situation has further exacerbated the credibility crisis faced by the mining sector in recent years, particularly due to disasters related to workplace safety and health. Thus, perceptions of the industry's efforts to address climate change have become as crucial to investors as to the communities directly affected by the exploitation, which are becoming increasingly demanding and aware of their rights (HOPKINS; KEMP, 2021).
In an effort to reinvent themselves, mining companies have positioned themselves as protagonists in the production of "clean energy" through the extraction of minerals essential for electricity generation from sources such as wind and solar energy, as well as in energy storage and the infrastructure needed for transmission. These minerals, known as "critical minerals," are defined by the International Energy Agency (IEA) as those indispensable for clean energy technologies and other technological innovations, whose supply chains are vulnerable to disruptions (IEA, 2023).
However, the rhetoric of expanding mining as the only path to combating the climate crisis presents issues that must be analyzed critically. The first point concerns the fact that expanding mineral extraction calls into question the idea of "clean energy," as the extraction and processing of these minerals cause significant social and environmental impacts. Thus, the term "clean energy" becomes an oxymoron, a contradiction in terms, which companies cling to in order to continue making profits, promising a "clean future" through "dirty mining" (REDCLIFT, 2006).
Another point is the defense of the false idea that there are sufficient mineral resources to sustain the current energy consumption model. This alternative has already been proven unsustainable, given the high demand for these minerals, particularly in the coming years, and the limited availability of these ores on the planet, which would not only prevent the so-called "transition" but also threaten other rights that would have to be mitigated to achieve this goal:
“[...] this narrative could even hinder resistance in territories and generate new challenges for communities facing the impacts of extractive projects. For example, opening a lithium mine to manufacture batteries would appear to be a more legitimate and justifiable goal than extracting gold for financial speculation. Implicit in this discourse of combating ‘global’ climate change would be a fundamentally utilitarian mindset, as in the name of ‘saving the world,’ some ‘local’ sacrifices would have to be accepted” (COELHO; MILANEZ; PINTO, 2016, p. 07).
In this scenario, Brazil has stood out in the international context due to its vast reserve of critical minerals (SILVA et al., 2024). However, many of these minerals are located in areas that have already faced the impacts of mining for years, making them highly vulnerable to new environmental damage. Furthermore, other reserves are in territories that are yet unexplored but of great cultural and biological importance, which are still being pressured for the opening of new exploration areas (QUEIOROZ, 2024).
As a consequence, Brazil, in addition to its extractivist history and recent worldwide repercussions of disasters in the past few years (MARTINS, 2022), risks continuing to be a mere supplier of primary resources in this new context. This scenario could result in high environmental, social, and economic costs for the country if the transition is not carried out in a planned manner and in line with already established socio-environmental rights.
In the face of the challenges posed by the energy transition and the growing demand for critical minerals, it is essential that Brazil adopts a strategic and responsible approach to prevent this phase from becoming yet another cycle of predatory extractivism. The country, with its vast mineral resource reserves, has a unique opportunity to lead the transition to a low-carbon economy, but to do so, it must align mineral development with the protection of socio-environmental rights and the preservation of essential ecosystems.
We must not allow that, in the name of "clean energy," the exploitation of critical minerals follows the same path of devastation that characterizes the history of mining in Brazil. The energy transition must be built on principles of social justice and environmental sustainability so that the mistakes of the past are not repeated, but rather a future is promoted that respects local communities and the environment.
*PhD candidate in Environmental Law at the University of São Paulo (USP), with a scholarship from the CAPES Academic Excellence Program, and is part of the coordination of the extension group "Environmental Law Workshop" at the USP Law School. She holds a Master's degree in Law from the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU) and is a specialist in Environmental and Urban Law from PUC/Minas.
References
CAPRA, Fritjof; MATTEI, Ugo. The Eco-Legal Revolution: Systemic Law in Harmony with Nature and the Community. Translated by Jeferson Luiz Camargo. São Paulo: Editora Cultrix, 2018.
COEHO, Tádzio Peters; MILANEZ, Bruno; PINTO, Raquel G. The Company, the State, and the Communities. In: ZONTA, Marcio; TROCATE, Charles (Eds.) The Mineral Issue in Brazil. If Only the Burden Were Lighter: Reflections on the Samarco/Vale/BHP BILLITON Disaster. Vol. 2, Marabá (PA): Editorial iGuana, 2016.
GIDDENS, Anthony. The Uncontrolled World. Translated by Maria Luiza X. de A. Borges. Rio de Janeiro: Record, 2002.
HOPKINS, Andrew; KEMP, Deanna. Credibility Crisis: Brumadinho and the Politics of Mining Industry Reform. Sydney: Wolters Kluwer Publishers, 2021.
INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY – IEA. Latin America Energy Outlook. Paris: International Energy Agency, 2023.
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MARTINS, Fernanda Rezende. Challenges in the Reparations for the Victims of the Fundão Dam: Management of the Case by Brazil and Emerging Possibilities in the Inter-American System of Human Rights Protection. São Paulo: Dialética, 2022.
OST, François. Nature on the Margins of the Law: Ecology Tested by Law. Lisbon: Instituto Piaget, 1995.
QUEIROZ, Christina. Disputed Territories. Pesquisa FAPESP, September 2024, pp. 78-83. Available at: https://revistapesquisa.fapesp.br/leia-a-edicao-de-setembro-de-2024/. Accessed on: November 22, 2024.
REDCLIFT, Michael R. Sustainable Development (1987–2005): An Oxymoron Comes of Age. Horizontes Antropológicos, Porto Alegre, Vol. 12, No. 25, pp. 65-84, Jan./Jun. 2006.
SILVA, G. F et al. (Eds.) An Overview of Critical and Strategic Minerals of Brazil. 2024 Edition. Geological Survey of Brazil, Brasília - DF, 2024.
SONTER, Laura J.; HERRERA, Diego; BARRETT, Damian J.; GALFORD, Gillian L.; MORAN, Chris J.;
SOARES-FILHO, Britaldo S. Mining Drives Extensive Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. Nature Communications, pp. 1-7, 2017.
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