Pages above:
More than 70% of Amazon loss occurred between May and July 2004,
when President Lula's Action Plan to Curb Deforestation had already
been adopted. The Plan, which was presented in March 2004, took seven
months of elaboration and had the participation of 13 Ministries
committing resources, defining responsibilities and setting a
timetable.
"Clearly Lula's administration has failed up to now to implement the Action Plan and to protect the Amazon,"said Paulo Adario, Greenpeace Amazon Campaign Coordinator. "Although there have been positive measures taken by the Government, such as the creation of protected areas and demarcation of Indigenous lands, the fact that the annual average of deforestation has been more than 23,000 km2 for the last three years is simply unacceptable. This is a national shame."
During the same period, Lula's Government has celebrated the rapid expansion in grain production and world leadership in meat exports, with the Minister of Treasury Antonio Palocci declaring, "Agribusiness is the best business of Brazil (1). "
Also, almost half (48%) of the deforestation occurred in the State of Mato Grosso, governed by the largest individual soy producer in the world, Blairo Maggi. Of the 12,576 square kilometres lost in the State, 4,176 km2 were authorised by the government. The rest was
illegal. Maggi doesn't hide his opinion about deforestation: "A 40 percent increase in deforestation doesn't mean anything at all, and I don't feel the slightest guilt over what we are doing here," Maggi said in an interview to The New York Times in September 2003,
referring to the Amazon deforestation rate of the previous year (2).
"Agribusiness and illegal logging are key culprits of deforestation," added Adario. "Lula's administration is facing a fundamental contradiction: to fight Amazon deforestation or to promote the expansion of agribusiness to pay the Brazilian external debt. To make
a real difference on the ground, the Government needs restrict soy plantations only in areas already deforested, combat illegal logging, and effectively implement their own anti-deforestation Plan."
By allowing this level of Amazon destruction, the Government is also contributing to the devastating impacts of global warming. CO2 emissions from deforestation and burning in the Amazon are the main Brazilian contributions to climate change and there is growing evidence that climate change is drying out the forests (3).
"Clearly Lula's administration has failed up to now to implement the Action Plan and to protect the Amazon,"said Paulo Adario, Greenpeace Amazon Campaign Coordinator. "Although there have been positive measures taken by the Government, such as the creation of protected areas and demarcation of Indigenous lands, the fact that the annual average of deforestation has been more than 23,000 km2 for the last three years is simply unacceptable. This is a national shame."
During the same period, Lula's Government has celebrated the rapid expansion in grain production and world leadership in meat exports, with the Minister of Treasury Antonio Palocci declaring, "Agribusiness is the best business of Brazil (1). "
Also, almost half (48%) of the deforestation occurred in the State of Mato Grosso, governed by the largest individual soy producer in the world, Blairo Maggi. Of the 12,576 square kilometres lost in the State, 4,176 km2 were authorised by the government. The rest was
illegal. Maggi doesn't hide his opinion about deforestation: "A 40 percent increase in deforestation doesn't mean anything at all, and I don't feel the slightest guilt over what we are doing here," Maggi said in an interview to The New York Times in September 2003,
referring to the Amazon deforestation rate of the previous year (2).
"Agribusiness and illegal logging are key culprits of deforestation," added Adario. "Lula's administration is facing a fundamental contradiction: to fight Amazon deforestation or to promote the expansion of agribusiness to pay the Brazilian external debt. To make
a real difference on the ground, the Government needs restrict soy plantations only in areas already deforested, combat illegal logging, and effectively implement their own anti-deforestation Plan."
By allowing this level of Amazon destruction, the Government is also contributing to the devastating impacts of global warming. CO2 emissions from deforestation and burning in the Amazon are the main Brazilian contributions to climate change and there is growing evidence that climate change is drying out the forests (3).
Notes to Editor
1 .Statement at the Seminar "New Private Instruments for FinancingAgribusiness", in 14 April, 2005. Quoted by the newspaper O Liberal.
2. "Relentless Foe of the Amazon Jungle: Soybeans" - NYT, 09/17/2003
3. A drier forest leads to more forest fires. Increased CO2 emissions contribute to more climate change. This in turn dries out the foresteven more, making it more susceptible to fires and dieback in avicious and devastating cycle.
Contact information
-
Paulo Adario, Greenpeace Amazon Campaign Coordinator: +55 92 81158928
Tica Minami, Greenpeace Amazon Media Officer: +55 92 9995 2070
