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ENVIRONMENT
"Now the only way forward is implementation", says Marina Silva about climate change actions
Among the actions Brazil will present at COP30 are the effort to reduce deforestation in the Amazon and the Cerrado, the CO² reduction goal, and disaster prevention investments. Image: Diego Campos/Secom-PR
Minister Marina Silva (Environment and Climate Change) was interviewed by radio stations from various regions of Brazil this Wednesday, March 19, during the Bom dia, Ministra (“Good Morning, Minister”) program. During the conversation, the minister highlighted actions related to public policy implementation, deforestation and firefighting. She also underscored the strategic importance of hosting the UN Conference on Climate Change - COP30 in November in Belém, capital city of the state of Pará
“We have a great opportunity of once again having one of the most important conferences in Brazil, because it was born in Brazil in 1992, at Eco 92, and it is the first time we will host a COP here. In other words, we had the mother conference, where it was born, and now it returns as a 30 year-old adult,” illustrated the minister.
Marina Silva stressed that Brazil will present at COP30 results that strengthen the country’s leadership in terms of the responsibility towards the environment. Among them are the work that resulted in the deforestation drop in the Amazon and the Cerrado, the CO² reduction goal, and disaster prevention investments. Data from Brazil’s National Institute of Space Research (INPE) indicate that deforestation alerts in the Legal Amazon have hit the lowest level of the historical series for February, with a 64.26% reduction compared to February 2024.
“We will also arrive with the Climate Plan (Plano Clima), with its seven programs for mitigation and 16 for adaptation, and the Ecological Transformation Plan (Plano de Transformação Ecológica), led by the Ministry of Finance, where we not only have a plan but also have sought resources.
Minister Haddad and I went to New York to launch green titles and obtained BRL 10 billion for the Climate Fund (Fundo Clima),” explained the minister.
Marina Silva stated that this is the moment to implement the decisions made during the many years of global discussions. “We have spent 33 years debating. Now there is only one path: implementation. It is the end of fossil fuels, of deforestation, and this must reflect in actions, because when we talk about the end of deforestation, we must understand that it requires large investments. We have goals for all economic sectors: transportation, energy, industry, agriculture, deforestation,” she listed.
We have spent 33 years debating. Now there is only one path: implementation. It is the end of fossil fuels, of deforestation, and this must reflect in actions, because when we talk about the end of deforestation, we must understand that it requires large investments”
MARINA SILVA
Brazil’s Minister of Environment and Climate Change
NDCs — Marina Silva also pointed out that the most important decisions are made before the Conference, within each country. She stated that 20 nations have already presented their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Brazil’s current NDC includes the goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 53% by 2030 and zero net emissions by 2050.
The minister emphasized that the country has been promoting economic growth by encouraging the bioeconomy and expanding access to green financing. “These goals must be aligned to ensure the temperature does not rise above 1.5ºC. It is not about reducing emissions for the sake of it — it is about seizing the opportunity for a new cycle of prosperity. That is why we are investing in bioindustry, the bioeconomy, the circular economy, low-carbon agriculture, and our capacity to produce food,” Silva declared.
ENDING FOSSIL FUELS — Minister Marina Silva also stated the urgency to phasing out fossil fuels and the need for investments to achieve this. “The roadmap for ending the use of fossil fuels is an unavoidable necessity for humanity. The use of fossil fuels has caused the climate change with all the problems we face, and it depends on public funding from rich countries and private financing.”
DEFORESTATION — The country’s continuous strategies to deter deforestation were also highlighted by the minister. She announced that Action Plans to Prevent and Control Deforestation will be launched for each of the national biomes. The minister underscored that the two remaining plans —Pampa and Atlantic Forest— will be launched by April.
LEGAL AMAZON — The plans are initiatives of the Federal Government to reduce deforestation in each biome. One of them is PPCDam —designed to reduce deforestation in the Legal Amazon, which is currently in its fifth stage and aims to zero deforestation by 2030. Another one is PPCerrado, which was relaunched in November 2023. The plans for Pantanal and Caatinga were publicized in December 2024.
REDUCTION — The head of Environment highlighted that, with the positive results obtained with PPCDam, deforestation in the Amazon dropped 46% compared to 2022. “From this experience, we customized plans for each biome. In the last two years, we have already managed to design the plan to counter deforestation in the Pantanal and in the Cerrado, and we are finishing the plans for the Pampa and the Atlantic Forest. And we have had positive results from the actions undertaken by IBAMA and ICMBio,” underscored the minister.
PREVENTION — The minister also addressed actions to combat forest fires. Among the adopted measures is the largest number of firefighters hired in history, with 4,608 professionals organized in 231 federal forest fire brigades. The number represents a 25% increase compared to 2024.
MAPPING — Additionally, the minister highlighted the signing of an environmental emergency ordinance to counter the risk of forest fires in specific regions and seasons. The document points out areas across the country that are vulnerable to fires and identifies the higher-risk periods, aiming to establish the parameters to define priority actions by the states to prevent burnings. “We have expanded the capacity to hire firefighters. Before, we needed a one-year interval between hires. We reduced it to six months. Then, we reduced it to three months. And now, we can hire these firefighters for longer terms. There are over 200 brigades across Brazil,” stated the minister.
MANAGEMENT — The measures also include the approval of the National Integrated Fire Management Policy (Política Nacional de Manejo Integrado do Fogo) and the acquisition of aircraft and other equipment. “The Integrated Fire Management Committee has been meeting regularly, engaging all states and brigades. We have increased our intervention capacity and the number of vessels and aircraft for transportation and combat. At the same time, we are developing a prevention work and launching an educational campaign to avoid the use of fire,” stated Marina Silva.
RESTRUCTURING — Another issue she addressed is the restructuring of enforcement agencies. Minister Silva emphasized the importance of strengthening the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA) and the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio), which are fundamental for combating deforestation and forest fires. She also highlighted the importance of the integrated work of the Federal Police (Polícia Federal) and the Federal Highway Police (Polícia Rodoviária Federal). “We increased IBAMA’s oversight capacity in 96%. We ended up making a large purchase of equipment, with around 27 aircraft for IBAMA and ICMBio that are now ready for our actions to combat fires and environmental crimes. We are designing a real-time system to monitor criminal activity,” she stated.
EQUATORIAL MARGIN — The head of Environment explained that the exploration of the Equatorial Margin is a complex process. The Federal Government has been doing detailed studies before taking any action. She highlighted that the Office of the Chief of Staff has set up a situation room that constantly monitors the issue to ensure that the discussion will be transparent. “President Lula, with all his wisdom, required that these projects with high environmental impact be sent for studies. The studies are underway and IBAMA has been working on the license request made by Petrobras. The technical team will present its observations and the decision will be a technical one, whether positive or negative, because the entrepreneurial processes are related to this,” she pointed out.
WHO PARTICIPATED — “Bom dia, Ministra” is a co-production of the Social Communications Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic (Secretaria de Comunicação Social da Presidência da República /SECOM-PR) and Empresa Brasil de Comunicação (EBC). This Wednesday program included the following radio stations: Nacional Brasília, Amazônia, and Alto Solimões/EBC; Grande Rio FM (Petrolina/Pernambuco); Nova Vida FM (Brumado/Bahia); Banda B (Curitiba/Paraná); Rádio Alems (Campo Grande/Mato Grosso do Sul); and Clube de Parintins (Parintins/Amazonas).