Brazil can profit by reducing greenhouse gas emissions

From Writing - Publisher:. Marco Moreira

The reduction of greenhouse gas emissions could generate up to R $ 609 billion more in gross domestic product (GDP) of the country survey released on Tuesday -feira (22/09), in Brasilia, the Brazilian Forum on Climate Change (FBMC) accounts for the increase in the value projected for the period 2015-2030 if ambitious carbon cutting measures are taken.

The increase in the economy can be achieved through actions such as increased use of biofuels and investment in the transport sector, according to the propositions of the study, presented at a ceremony at the Ministry of Environment (MMA). The researchers point out also the low-carbon agriculture and encouraging the charcoal in the steel industry as alternatives to jumpstart a green economy in the country.

PUBLIC POLICY

The data collected by the scientific community should serve to support future actions of the federal government. According to the Environment Minister, Izabella Teixeira, the goal is to increase the success of public policies adopted in the country. "There can be a gap between science and decision makers," he said. "The combination of both is a way to make the most efficient actions from an environmental and economic point of view."

The projections coincide with Brazilian interests carbon cutting and promotion of sustainable development facing the global community. In the coming days, the country will present to the United Nations the national target (INDECI, its acronym in English) to reduce emissions to limit the increase in global average temperature to 2 ° C. With this, Brazil oficializará its share of contribution to the future global climate regime.

The new climate order will be dictated by the protocol that the 193 signatories to the UN Climate Convention will negotiate at the end of the year in Paris. "Despite the optimistic, I recognize that the negotiations will not be easy because of the current bias," mused Izabella Teixeira. According to her, however, Brazil is favorable position in the debate. "The INDC we present is consistent with the interests of the country and the Convention of the staff," he argued.

Variables

The study Economic and Social Implications: Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Scenarios (IES-Brazil) was coordinated by professors Luiz Pinguelli Rosa and Emilio La Rovere, the Alberto Luiz Coimbra Institute for Graduate Studies and Research in Engineering (COPPE /Federal University of Rio de Janeiro). The survey counted on the participation of representatives of the main sectors of the economy and the institutional support of the federal government.

We evaluated the impacts of mitigation scenarios on key economic and social indicators, such as GDP growth, the unemployment rate, the general price index, the investment rate, the balance of trade and consumption of families.

Each variable was designed from a comparison between the expected effects of the ongoing actions of the National Policy on Climate Change to what may occur if Brazil adopt additional measures to mitigate emissions.

The positive projections for the growth of GDP were made based on the value of the Brazilian currency in 2005 and show the ability to boost the economy through environmental measures. "The figures show that change is possible only expanding what government has currently developing," summarized Luiz Pinguelli Rosa, one of the coordinators of the survey and general secretary of FBMC.

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