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Accelerated sea advance pressures urgent decisions on the coast of São Paulo, with direct impacts on urban areas, risks to the population, and judicial demand for concrete measures after years of technical studies and recurrent episodes of storm surges.
The Court ordered the City of São Vicente to adopt a series of measures to combat coastal erosion on Gonzaguinha and Milionários beaches, on the coast of São Paulo, after the Public Prosecutor’s Office of São Paulo obtained an injunction pointing to current risks to the population and urban infrastructure of the waterfront.
The decision imposes deadlines for emergency actions, provides for the removal or relocation of structures in vulnerable areas, and sets a daily fine of R$ 1,000 in case of non-compliance, limited to R$ 500,000.
Justifying the urgency of the measure, Judge Leonardo de Mello Gonçalves stated that the problem already extends beyond the environmental sphere and impacts public safety.
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Mr. Eninho, at 67 years old, has lived for over 40 years on the same property in Delfinópolis, cultivates food, raises animals, receives tourists, and transforms simple country life into an example of happiness and tradition in the Serra da Canastra.
In the decision, he noted that the risk of damage is “current, serious, and imminent” in a region that has accumulated episodes of storm surges, flooding, and damage to urban equipment in recent years.
Mandatory measures against coastal erosion in São Vicente
The public civil action was filed by the Special Action Group for Environmental Defense, Gaema, of the São Paulo Public Prosecutor’s Office.
According to prosecutor Almachia Zwarg Acerbi, the investigation into the sea’s advance in São Vicente began in 2003 and gathered hydrological studies and technical diagnoses that pointed to human interference in the worsening of the erosive process.
For the Public Prosecutor’s Office, sufficient knowledge was produced over the years, but the public authorities’ response fell short of the severity of the scenario.
By injunction, the municipal administration will have 30 days to prepare an Emergency Storm Surge Action Plan.
Within 60 days, it must begin interventions considered light and reversible, including the minimum re-profiling of the sand strip at the most critical points, a measure aimed at reducing the impact of waves on the beach and boardwalk.
Within the same period, the municipality will also have to remove or relocate urban furniture and equipment installed in the post-beach areas most exposed.
The decision also requires danger signage, interdiction protocols, escape routes, and specific budget allocation for mitigation actions.
New rigid containment works, such as walls and jetties, can only proceed with specific judicial authorization and prior environmental impact assessment.
Studies reveal accelerated retreat of the sand strip
One of the main technical foundations used in the case is the study “Assessment of the Continental Coastal Dynamics of the Beaches of São Vicente – SP,” presented by the Geological Survey of Brazil after two years of research.
The survey was produced to support decisions by the city hall and other public bodies regarding coastal occupation, disaster prevention, and areas most susceptible to sand loss.
According to the data cited in the action and reproduced by media outlets that had access to the decision, the retreat of the coastline reaches 1.85 meters per year in stretches of Praia dos Milionários.
In Gonzaguinha, the advance of erosion affects almost half of the monitored strip.
In other technical surveys released in 2025, the SGB also indicated that certain points in São Vicente have already recorded losses of up to 3 meters of sand per year, which reinforces the vulnerability of the waterfront.
Impacts of storm surges and damage to urban infrastructure
Erosion is not treated merely as a change in the landscape.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office links the problem to concrete episodes of damage recorded between 2023 and 2026, with ocean surges, spring tides, and waves over 3 meters.
These events caused flooding on public roads, destruction of boardwalks, damage to lighting and drainage systems, and even situations of people being isolated at points along the waterfront.
São Vicente City Hall says it is already conducting studies and will appeal
In a statement, São Vicente City Hall informed that for three years it has maintained a set of actions and studies aimed at combating coastal erosion on Gonzaguinha and Milionários beaches.
According to the municipal administration, the work has technical-scientific support from institutions such as the University of São Paulo and the Federal University of São Paulo and includes monitoring coastal dynamics, analyzing sea level rise, and evaluating engineering solutions to protect the sandy strip and the surrounding urban infrastructure.
The municipality also stated that it will appeal the injunction.
In its statement, it argues that the judicial decision does not fully take into account the preventive measures, the technical studies already underway, and the structured planning in progress.
It also declared that it presented the reports, executed actions, and the schedule of ongoing initiatives, and that it will continue to dialogue with the judicial bodies to reconcile the judicial determination with the work already being carried out.
History of studies and pressure for concrete actions
The controversy surrounding erosion on São Vicente’s beaches did not arise with the most recent action.
Previous studies already treated the region as a sensitive area, especially due to the alteration of natural sediment transport and the consolidated urban occupation along the waterfront.
The differential of the current decision is to transform this technical accumulation into a judicial obligation, with a timeline, oversight, and punishment in case of administrative omission.
In practice, the injunction places the city hall before an immediate demand to act on a front that has been debated for years among researchers, environmental agencies, and the justice system.
At the same time, the case exposes how coastal erosion ceased to be a topic restricted to academic diagnoses and began to demand concrete decisions on urban safety, land use, and the protection of residents and visitors to the waterfront.
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