PRESCRIPTION IN ENVIRONMENTAL ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEEDINGS: DOCTRINAL FOUNDATIONS, LEGAL FRAMEWORKS AND DEFENSIVE STRATEGIES

Abstract

This article analyses the statute of limitations within Brazilian environmental administrative proceedings, with emphasis on the constitutional and statutory foundations governing its application, the distinct prescriptive modalities recognized by doctrine and case law, and the main controversies arising from forensic practice. Drawing from the normative framework of Federal Law No. 9,605/1998 and Decree No. 6,514/2008, the study examines the punitive limitation period, the triennial intercurrent prescription, the application of criminal limitation periods to environmental offences, the enforcement limitation period and the thesis of the imprescriptibly of environmental injunctions. It is argued that the correct understanding of these modalities is indispensable both for the effectiveness of environmental protection and for the guarantee of the constitutional prerogatives of the sanctioned party. The methodology adopted is dogmatic-analytical, drawing on legislation, specialized doctrine and superior court jurisprudence.