Banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO: JOAO MODESTO DE MEDEIROS JUNIOR

Uma banca de QUALIFICAÇÃO de DOUTORADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : JOAO MODESTO DE MEDEIROS JUNIOR
DATE: 19/06/2024
TIME: 14:00
LOCAL: Videoconferência via Google Meet
TITLE:

THE INLAND EXPANSION OF WIND ENERGY IN THE STATE OF RIO GRANDE DO NORTE AND THE SOCIO-ENVIRONMENTAL CONFLICTS

KEY WORDS:

Wind Energy; Socio-environmental Conflicts; Serra de Santana; Rio Grande do Norte; Land Reform Settlements.

PAGES: 148
BIG AREA: Ciências Agrárias
AREA: Agronomia
SUMMARY:

In the past two decades, wind energy has become Brazil's preferred source for its energy transition, given the efforts made by governments in terms of investments and infrastructure at various levels to enable the implementation and expansion of wind farms, especially in the Northeast region. This measure has been justified by the sustainability capacity of this model compared to other sources, especially those originating from fossil fuels. Today, according to data provided by ANEEL's Generation Information System (SIGA), there are 1,050 wind installations, with 947 in the Northeast alone, and Rio Grande do Norte (RN) is the state that produces the most, reaching 9,756,636.00 kW with 384 projects. In the early years of expansion in RN, the wind sector focused on the coastal region. However, more recently, the installation of wind farms has been occurring in inland areas of the state. In this context, this thesis aims to understand how the advance of wind farms in the Serra de Santana region, in the interior of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, alters the dynamics of this territory based on case studies of the Acauã and Alagoinha Settlements. This research is divided into three phases, which are subdivided into chapters structured in the format of scientific articles. The following methodologies were adopted in each chapter: in the first, a systematic review was conducted to understand the patterns of socio-environmental conflicts brought by the literature regarding the coexistence with wind farms, considering the time frame from 2003 to 2023; in the second chapter, a survey was conducted on journalistic reports addressing the socio-environmental conflicts arising from the implementation of wind farms in the state of RN, especially regarding land use and occupation through lease contracts in the interior of the state, from January 2011 to April 2024; for the third chapter, case studies were conducted in the Acauã and Alagoinha Settlements, in the Serra de Santana region, in the state of RN, through the collection of information via semi-structured interviews, to understand the main causes of tension and conflicts in this area. The results obtained revealed a concentration of research in Ceará (Brazil) and Oaxaca (Mexico), with the analysis of 18 articles that presented socio-environmental conflicts involving land use and occupation by wind sector companies, which strain the relationships of traditional communities living in the surrounding regions of these projects. Additionally, the pattern of journalistic reports demonstrated that the current land lease model hinders agriculture and livestock farming in the interior of RN due to the lack of transparency in the contractual clauses, which results in socio-environmental conflicts due to the privatization of areas. Regarding the case studies, it was possible to identify two distinct scenarios: in the Acauã Settlement, a socio-environmental conflict was observed between local residents and the wind energy company due to noise generation and cracks in buildings; whereas in the Alagoinha Settlement, the residents were favorable to the presence of wind farms due to the compensations offered by the company, which provided specific improvements in local infrastructure.

  

1.     SDGs to which the Thesis Adheres

The thesis aligns with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number 7.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Presidente - 1678883 - CIMONE ROZENDO DE SOUZA
Interno - ***.540.504-** - GESINALDO ATAÍDE CÂNDIDO - UFCG
Externa ao Programa - 2374871 - ZORAIDE SOUZA PESSOA - UFRNExterno à Instituição - MELQUISEDEQUE DE OLIVEIRA FERNANDES - UFERSA