“Brazil progresses, but still falls short of biodiversity targets.”
An article published by Valor Econômico, both online and in print, featured comments from Senior Partner João Emmanuel Cordeiro Lima.
Undesignated lands in the Amazon will be key to Brazil’s ability to meet its commitments.
By Ricardo Ivanov
COP16 ended with results that fell short of expectations. But where does Brazil stand regarding the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), created at the previous conference in 2022 and considered a major step forward for biodiversity?
“Still very far from the targets,” says Rafael Feltran-Barbieri, an economist and biologist working on the forest and climate team at WRI Brasil. He leads econometric analyses based on agricultural economics and the environment, in addition to projects on restoration, natural infrastructure, and climate economics.
“We have just over 22% of the territory formally protected – excluding Indigenous lands – and very unevenly distributed, with strong representation in the Amazon and little in other biomes. Besides needing to expand these areas to meet targets, it is also crucial to ensure they are truly protected,” says Barbieri.
MapBiomas, a collaborative project involving NGOs, universities, and tech startups that provides annual mapping of land use and cover, as well as monthly monitoring of water surfaces, has shown that the highest levels of deforestation and degradation—especially from fire and logging—occur in undesignated areas and conservation units.
Other targets that rely on multilateral agreements, such as funding for conservation and restoration, remain far from being met and are difficult to quantify with current data.
Brazil, the most biodiverse country in the world, also went to COP16 without its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (Epanb), which had been approved internally after two years of dialogue between ministries and civil society under the coordination of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MMA). The Epanb’s management tool is currently under revision—meaning it is effectively on hold, according to the MMA.
The current government has resumed the recognition of Indigenous territories. New conservation units have been established and existing ones expanded, both at the federal and state levels, such as in Pará. But the challenge remains significant.
“Shortly before COP16, the Brazilian government released a report indicating that the MMA, through its secretariats and affiliated agencies, made around 150 strategic contributions between January 2023 and October 2024,” says João Emmanuel Cordeiro Lima, a lawyer specializing in environmental, regulatory, and mining law. “These contributions are aligned with all 23 targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity and demonstrate Brazil’s progress and engagement.”
Highlighted actions include the creation and expansion of federal conservation units, such as the Serra do Teixeira National Park—a 61,000-hectare Caatinga biome in Paraíba; the Parima National Forest—a 109,000-hectare Amazon biome in Roraima; the expansion of the Chocoaré Extractive Reserve in Mato Grosso to 4,000 hectares, covering coastal-marine and Amazon ecosystems; and the enlargement of the Viruá National Park in Roraima to 214,000 hectares, among others.
Barbieri notes that this 620,000-hectare increase is meaningful but adds less than 0.1% toward achieving the goal of conserving 30% of ecosystems. He emphasizes the need to focus more on the Caatinga and Cerrado. “The GBF targets are ambitious, and implementation in these first two years has been insufficient. Much more needs to be done,” says Lima.
The Restoration and Reforestation Observatory notes that about 150,000 hectares are currently involved in restoration projects, alongside 39 million hectares of secondary vegetation in regenerative processes, according to MapBiomas data. In theory, this would meet three goals of the National Native Vegetation Recovery Plan (Planaveg), created in 2017 to strengthen public policies for sustainable agriculture through financial incentives and other measures, with the goal of reaching 12 million hectares by 2030. “But without a guarantee that this vegetation will remain intact, it cannot be counted toward the targets,” Barbieri explains.
In the Amazon, undesignated lands will be the “deciding factor” for whether Brazil meets its targets. These lands currently cover nearly 50 million hectares. “If allocated for protection and to new Indigenous territories, they will help meet the biome’s goals. If they remain vulnerable to land grabbing and degradation, they could lead us to climate collapse by pushing us past the point of no return,” says Barbieri.
In the rest of the country, the near absence of undesignated lands presents a major challenge for the Forest Code. Brazilian environmental law includes Law 6.938, the National Environmental Policy Act of 1981, which contains the key principles for a national environmental framework. “It still fulfills its purpose today. But it needs to be implemented in practice,” says Paulo Affonso Leme Machado, lawyer, retired prosecutor, and author of Brazilian Environmental Law.
According to Machado, the National Environment Council (Conama) must act as a primary watchdog, highlighting failures in federal action. “There has been progress in some areas of environmental legislation, but also setbacks. As progress, I cite the National Solid Waste Policy law; as a setback, the Pesticide Law. Without constant and genuine civic oversight, even the best environmental laws become ineffective.”
Monitoring mechanisms and mobilization of the necessary resources are essential if Brazil is to make significant progress. Brazil’s biodiversity access legislation is anchored by the National System for the Management of Genetic Heritage and Associated Traditional Knowledge (SISGen). It is through SISGen that users of Brazil’s biodiversity comply with the legal requirement to report their biodiversity research and the products developed from it.
To meet its goals, Brazil would need to invest between R$ 5 billion and R$ 7 billion per year, according to experts. “That’s a very low figure compared to the ecosystem services provided by native vegetation—such as soil protection, pollination, climate regulation, and rain-fed irrigation. These services are valued between R$ 12 billion and R$ 20 billion annually, and they particularly benefit agriculture and livestock,” says Barbieri.
Valor Econômico, November 8, 2024, 05:04 a.m.
