The Cubatão Pollution Control Project: Popular Participation and Public Accountability

Abstract

This article examines the Cubatão Pollution Control Project (CPCP) carried out by Cetesb, the São Paulo state environmental protection agency, to control air, water, and soil pollution in the city of Cubatão, Brazil. It focuses on Cetesb's strategy to involve the Cubatão community in the CPCP as a means to increase the agency's leverage vis-à-vis groups against pollution control implementation, especially the polluting industries. To achieve its goals, Cetesb designed a unique and unprecedented program of environmental education and community participation. The program included extensive surveying of neighborhood demands, orga nization of public meetings for project evaluation, and establishment of new channels of public accountability. As a result, community support played a critical role in Cetesb's ability to carry out pollution control in Cubatão.

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