Paleontological Salvage Analysis in the Context of the Brazilian Environmental Licensing

Paleontological salvage programs play an important role in the protection of paleontological heritage. In Brazil, paleontological salvage is defined by Decree 155/2016 of the National Mining Agency (ANM), formerly the National Department of Mineral Production (DNPM), as the exhaustive sampling of fossils in order to mitigate the risk of destruction or irreversible damage to the fossil record. This process also includes the actions necessary to promote the preservation of the salvaged fossils. These activities are sometimes a requirement for the granting of environmental licenses for development and construction projects or activities that could potentially lead to the deterioration of the paleontological heritage in Brazil. In this paper, we provide an overview of paleontological salvage activities in Brazil from their first record in ANM. For such analysis, we used the data on paleontological salvage programs registered with the National Mining Agency (ANM), from 2007 to 2022, to evaluate their impact on the conservation of paleontological heritage in Brazil. We also discuss the existing regulations that guide these activities and provide recommendations based on successful experiences with the management of paleontological salvage activities at the municipal level. Drawing on the experience of other fields of study, such as speleology and archeology, we also propose replicable practices in paleontology to improve the analysis undertaken by environmental authorities regarding the need to carry out paleontological salvage activities.