Stewardship — a word for a way of caring.
The Anglo-Saxon notion of stewardship captures, with precision, the operating philosophy of Entre Rios: caring for something entrusted to us, with the implicit obligation to return it — or pass it on — in no worse condition than that in which we received it. That is the frame in which we operate.
We are not simply owners of a set of land parcels. We are temporary stewards of a territory that existed before us and will continue to exist long after us. This awareness changes the way we make decisions.
The three pillars we set out below are not a communications campaign — they are the operating structure of the company. Each has concrete implications for annual management decisions, investments, technical partnerships and dialogue with authorities and communities.
Preserve.
More than two thirds of the territory are managed under strict protection or permanent conservation. This is not a marginal proportion — it is the structure of the project.
Keeping a coastal territory in good conservation condition over decades demands deliberate decisions and sustained investment. Stating an intention to preserve is not enough — it must be operationalised.
Continuous ecological corridors. Management is planned to maintain continuous, unfragmented vegetation corridors along hydrological systems and between the main forest patches. This continuity is decisive for the viability of terrestrial fauna populations and for the maintenance of ecological processes.
Active surveillance and protection. In coordination with the competent authorities, we maintain surveillance over the territory to prevent and respond to incursions, illegal abstraction, fires, deforestation, hunting and other anthropogenic pressures. This surveillance is carried out with sobriety — without spectacle, through method, in partnership.
Recovery of degraded areas. In zones with some degree of historical disturbance, we conduct ecological recovery processes — assisted natural regeneration, planting with native species, control of invasives — guided by technical and auditable principles.
Investment in scientific knowledge. We support and promote academic and scientific study of the territory — biodiversity inventories, ecological monitoring, hydrological and geomorphological studies. Technical knowledge of the land is the foundation of all our decisions. Without it, conservation is good intention. With it, conservation is a plan.
Develop with responsibility.
Where development is technically and legally feasible, we carry it out with the same seriousness with which we conserve the rest.
Entre Rios is not an environmental foundation — it is a company. The territory contains areas suited to use and occupation, and their orderly development is itself part of the economic sustainability that makes conservation of the whole possible. The question is not whether development will occur, but how.
Integrated master plan. The development of areas suitable for occupation is planned in an integrated way, within a Master Plan that considers the territorial whole, the ecosystems present, the neighbouring communities, the existing infrastructure and the long-term horizon. There are no point-by-point use decisions — there is a coherent plan.
Formal licensing process. Any significant intervention follows, as a matter of obligation, the formal environmental licensing process — conducted with INEMA and other competent authorities, with a specific Environmental Impact Assessment, public hearings where applicable, and full compliance with all regulatory phases: Preliminary Licence, Installation Licence, Operation Licence.
Multidisciplinary teams. Planning engages teams specialised in architecture, urbanism, landscape, environment, hydrology, conservation biology, sociology, environmental law and public administration. The complexity of a territory like this can only be addressed by diverse teams and long processes.
International standards as a reference. Where relevant, our processes incorporate internationally recognised benchmarks of good practice — in sustainable construction, water management, energy efficiency, materials, biodiversity, landscape integration — regardless of whether the Brazilian legal framework strictly requires it.
Decade-long horizon. The development cycle, when it materialises, will be long. Entre Rios is in no hurry. Haste is the worst advisor on irreversible territorial decisions.
Integrate the community.
Development that makes sense is development that benefits those who live here. We are not an exception to this principle — we are a particular case of it.
The Entre Rios territory is neither empty nor isolated. Around it — and in some cases within it — live communities whose way of life is closely tied to the land, the river and the sea. Artisanal fishers, shellfish gatherers, smallholder farmers, teachers, midwives, community leaders — people who have known the territory for generations and whose relationship with it has value in its own right.
Working with these communities — not in spite of them, not above them — is both an ethical and a practical requirement. Ethical, because respect for the continuity of local ways of life is a non-negotiable principle. Practical, because a territorial project that lacks the support of neighbouring communities lacks the social licence to operate — and without social licence, no environmental licence is enough.
For more on our community commitment, please see the Community page.
The frame we work within.
Our activity is structured by a set of Brazilian legal and regulatory instruments that, together, define what is possible, what is desirable and what is required.
APA do Litoral Norte da Bahia. The entire territory is included within this sustainable-use conservation unit, managed by INEMA — Bahia's state environmental and water resources institute.
EIA / RIMA. Any significant urbanistic intervention requires an Environmental Impact Assessment and an Environmental Impact Report — technical instruments that evaluate effects on ecosystems, water resources, landscape, communities and cultural heritage.
Phased licensing. The Brazilian environmental process is structured in three sequential licences — Preliminary (LP), Installation (LI) and Operation (LO) — each with its own requirements. We are, within the 2026–2030 horizon, in the preparatory phase for the Preliminary Licence for the coastal strip.
Municipal coordination. Alongside state-level procedures, the process is conducted in coordination with the municipality of Entre Rios, within the framework of the municipal master plan and local land-use competences.
Public hearings. The process foresees formal moments of public consultation, in which the EIA is presented to communities and civil society. We treat these hearings not as a formal obstacle, but as a legitimate space for accountability.
We do not disclose here specific administrative case numbers. This page will be updated as relevant public milestones of the process materialise.
Community and governance.
The three pillars only work together. Discover how we work with neighbouring communities and the institutional structure that frames the company.