The impact of the IIRSA Road Infrastructure Programme on Amazonia

Strategic environmental assessment of a large infrastructure programme

The Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America (IIRSA) was launched in September 2000 by the governments of the 12 South American countries aiming at improving transport, energy and telecommunication interconnections. Nine ‘development hubs’ all over the continent congregate projects, small and large, national and international, aimed at linking the countries with each other and with international markets.

As stated in its title, the book deals with roads in the Amazon region, arguably among the most controversial and potentially disruptive kind of projects in the IIRSA's portfolio. The first sentence of the first chapter synthesizes the dilemma: ‘Roads play a key role in economic development, yet are among the major driving forces behind the destruction of ecosystems’. The stakes are large, so are the concerns: ‘the environmental effects of IIRSA can be profound, contributing to large-scale land-use conversion, fragmentation and degradation of forests, and the ultimate destruction of ecosystems and the public goods they deliver.’

The table of contents suggests the book to be of interest not only to those involved or concerned with development and protection of the Amazon and its communities, but also to professionals and researchers of impact assessment at large.

The book features 12 chapters. In the first three, IIRSA and its rationale are explained. Chapter 4 introduces strategic environmental assessment (SEA). Chapters 5 and 6 discuss how to predict deforestation. The four following chapters review one case each: the Corredor Norte in the Bolivian Amazon, the so-called Guianese Shield Hub in Suriname, the city of Manaus and its infrastructure network and the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of (another) controversial highway in the Amazon, linking Manaus itself to Porto Velho, the city servicing two large hydroelectric schemes in the Madeira river: Santo Antonio and Jirau (Sánchez 2010). Chapter 11 attempts an integrated impact assessment of road infrastructure in Amazonia and Chapter 12 draws conclusions ‘towards an improved methodology for assessing the impact of mega-road infrastructure’.

Authors are critical of the SEA approach adopted by IIRSA, named ‘Environmental and Social Assessment with Strategic Approach’. The working paper describing the recommended methodology1 calls for a quick assessment based on secondary information only and limited public input. An SEA conducted under these guidelines could be concluded in six months. In Chapter 4, they argue that, for the region, a comprehensive and participatory approach is needed, and provide examples in Chapters 7 and 8. They believe that a ‘well-documented analysis’ is vital to counter ‘misunderstandings’ about the Amazon rainforest region (p. 114).

Chapter 5 reviews the effects of road construction on deforestation. The economic rationality behind decisions made by indirect agents – distinguishing between large and small-scale producers – is discussed in terms of socioeconomic and biophysical drivers affecting the behavior of these actors which, in turn, determines the outcomes in terms of economic production and environmental impact. Acknowledging the difficulties of anticipating the environmental impacts of economic expansion, it is shown that not only proximity to roads and towns explain the probability of forest being converted into commercial land, but also policy-related variables such as subsidies, tax exemptions and credit. However, the models featured in the section ‘Summarising the evidence’ are not explained. In discussing the implications of such studies for SEA, van Dijck reflects on how they could help in delineating a study area, but concludes that SEA use administrative boundaries ‘rather than the environmental impact boundaries derived from statistical or econometric models’ (p. 100).

Predicting deforestation arising from road construction is the subject of Chapter 6, a case study of Corredor Norte, a 1386 km-long road connecting La Paz with the Amazonian lowlands in the North of Bolivia. This short chapter (11 pages) chapter is followed by the longer, 38-page summary of the SEA of Corredor Norte. In the 234,000 km² study area, indigenous communities and vast stands of forests could be heavily affected by development. This SEA, funded by the Interamerican Development Bank (IDB), took 30 months to be completed and resulted, according to the authors, not only in an action plan, but in a ‘broad based agreement among all stakeholders as required by the authorities’ (p. 147), as well as in a geographical information system data base that can be used for a variety of projects and planning in northern Bolivia.

Another application of a comprehensive approach to SEA is synthesized in Chapter 8 on Suriname, where the results of quick-scan style of SEA conducted in 2007 on behalf of the IDB are contrasted with a comprehensive and participatory SEA conducted in 2010–11.

The short Chapter 10 comments on the environmental impact assessment of paving a 400km stretch of BR-319, the highway from Porto Velho to Manaus that could facilitate migration from the highly deforested southern part of the Amazon to new fronts of deforestation (Fearnside and Graça 2006). After criticizing the poor design of terms of reference for this EIA, authors conclude that it ‘has some similarity with a SEA’, as its analysis ‘extends beyond the large indirect influence area’ and the study ‘had to consider alternative transportation modalities, their possible combination and potential impacts’ (p. 202).

The potential impact of the whole road network considered for the Amazon region is discussed in Chapter 11, where authors seek to explore not only the ‘entire road infrastructure system in the Amazon territory’, but also its interaction with other economic activities. It is disputable if this very ambitious goal is met, but other drivers of deforestation – cattle ranching, soy beans etc. – are presented and attempts by other authors to conduct integrated assessments are reviewed.

Finally, Chapter 12 aims at presenting conclusions ‘towards an improved methodology for assessing the impact of mega-road infrastructure’. The text develops on a number of ‘aspects of the design and organization of SEAs’, including timing and corridor routing.

Overall, the book provides valuable information and insights, as well as a set of lessons learned. However, those who would like to know in some detail the models mentioned in different chapters do not find such explanation in the book nor are directed to other sources. An example, in addition to the mentioned model cited in Chapter 5, is the ‘clue scan’ model, first cited on p. 165 without any explanation, then cited again in Chapter 7 and briefly explained in the concluding Chapter 12.

The main message of the book is that in order to adequately inform decision-making, SEA should be developed over a solid foundation. In a region of high biodiversity value, large indigenous populations and possibly key for the continent's climate (Fraser 2014), opening up new roads is perhaps inevitable, but caution should be exerted. IIRSA has made only limited progress, but individual projects are popping up and they will likely go ahead with or without the IIRSA.

Notes

^1.http://www.iirsa.org/admin_iirsa_web/Uploads/Documents/ease_taller08_m1_anexo2_eng.pdf.