Brazil ups emissions commitments
The Brazilian delegate to the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow offered a “more ambitious” climate policy, but domestic critics were skeptical of the gesture, the Associated Press reported November 1.
Brazil at the climate summit set a goal of cutting total greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030, relative to 2005 levels. The previous target was 43%.
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“We present today a new, more ambitious climate goal," environment minister Joaquim Leite was quoted as saying.
Rodrigo Agostino, a Brazilian lawmaker and one of the delegates to COP26, said the move may be more of a face-saving gesture than anything.
“The world doesn’t accept the Brazilian goal, because it has a failure of methodology in measurement that allows us, theoretically, to increase emissions,” he told the AP.
A report published last week by environmental consortium Climate Observatory found that total greenhouse gas emissions from Brazil increased 9.5% last year due in large part to deforestation of the Amazon.
Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro has been a vocal supporter of deforestation. But recent statements from the populist leader show him trying to put on a good environmental face.
“Brazil is part of the solution to overcome this global challenge,” he said of the climate crisis.
Bolsonaro attended the weekend meeting of the G20 economies in Italy, but like Chinese president Xi Jinping and Russian president Vladimir Putin, he did not attend COP26. Brazilian vice president Hamilton Mourao said the government felt Bolsonaro would be poorly received and opponents would “cast stones at him.”