The purpose of this study is to demonstrate civil liability for damage to the coastal environment and the procedural means available under Brazilian law to defend it. It initially presents the principles directly related to civil liability for damage to the environment, as well as the environmental impact study and environmental licensing, which are means of prevention used by the State against abuses committed to this environment.

It then deals with the coastal zone and civil liability, more precisely the main types of damage caused to this environment. The procedural means for defending the environment are described, especially civil actions and inquiries, which are used through the work of organized civil society and the Public Prosecutor's Office, which, when it is not a party to the process for defending the coastal environment, acts as an enforcer of the law.

The mechanisms for protecting the environment are also analyzed: such as the conduct adjustment term, the control of administrative acts, the condemnation in obligation to do and the condemnation in money that reverts into Funds for the protection of the environment. .