Governments in the arc of devastation in the Amazon go to COP27 in search of resources and alignment with Lula

The governments of Amazonas, Acre and Rondônia are going to COP27, the UN climate conference, looking for international resources linked to the reduction of deforestation and carbon emissions, despite the fact that the region –known as Amacro– has constituted one of the main arcs of devastation of the Amazon.

The governors of the three states are Bolsonaristas and were re-elected in October. Local administrations have platforms to make inspection and environmental licensing more flexible and to encourage production in the region, in line with the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government policy adopted during the four-year term.

With Bolsonaro’s defeat at the polls and the election of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), who promises to resume policies of inspection and repression of illegal exploitation of wood and gold, for example, the governments of Amacro are seeking a realignment.

The attempt to get closer to the president-elect will take place at COP27 itself. Invited by the conference, Lula should be present in Egypt from the next 14th. On the same day, governors from all over the Legal Amazon should give a press conference to detail the plans of local administrations for the region.

These governors will provide Lula with details of the plans, as planned. The re-elected governor of Pará, Helder Barbalho (MDB), has been seeking a leading role in the movement of governors of the Amazon towards the elected president, even through the alignment with PT since the election.

The movement includes governors who have been on Bolsonaro’s side since the beginning of the current president’s administration – who was the most voted, for example, in Acre and Rondônia, with more than 70% of valid votes in the second round. The understanding is that the states depend on resources and policies from the federal government, which would force them to align with Lula.

Both the re-elected governor of Acre, Gladson Cameli (PP), and the governor of Rondônia, Marcos Rocha (União Brasil), are going to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, for COP27. The governor of Amazonas, Wilson Lima (União Brasil), decided not to go and will be represented by the Secretary of the Environment, Eduardo Taveira.

Deforestation in the Amazon in these three states has increased significantly in recent years.

In Acre, the devastation was 2,259 km2 from 2019 to 2021, more than double what was recorded in the previous three years, according to official data from INPE (National Institute for Space Research). In Rondônia, in three years, there were 4,358 km2, an increase of 18%. And in Amazonas, especially in the south of the state, deforestation was 5,140 km2 in three years, an increase of 67.7%.

Pará and Mato Grosso continue to lead deforestation rates, taking into account official data from 2019 to 2021, but Amazonas, Rondônia and Acre are now more closely followed.

“Acre will remain with the same posture: without radicalism, with respect to environmental legislation and support for the development and generation of jobs”, says the governor of the state, in an interview with Sheet in writing. “Our state still needs strong support from the federal government.”

According to Cameli, Acre has a system of incentives for environmental services, which seeks resources to finance climate policies and sustainable development.

“We have sustainable livestock projects, support for indigenous peoples, family production and legalized extractive activities”, says the governor. This will be used at COP27 to seek international funding.

Even with Bolsonaro’s defeat at the polls, the governor nods to the president. Cameli says that the current government is a “great partner” in the development of the North region.

Asked if he agrees with Lula’s promise to end mining in indigenous lands, stop deforestation in the Amazon and reuse areas already open for livestock, the governor of Acre says he is “in favor of a policy of open, broad and full dialogue between state and federal governments and the population”.

“In our state, we have had good results increasing the herd using only the areas already available, without deforesting for this”, he says. “I am in favor of a realistic, productive and modern vision for the Amazon.”

The government of Amazonas will seek international funding for low-carbon activities, even for the sake of climate justice, according to secretary Taveira. A carbon credit market system in the state will be launched during COP27, he said.

Taveira says that Amazonas will intensify bilateral relations with Germany and Norway, countries that finance the Amazon Fund, frozen in the Bolsonaro government. After Lula’s election, both countries have already signaled the unlocking of resources.

“The resumption of the Amazon Fund has been a demand of all governors in the region since 2019. The letters from the consortium demonstrate this”, says the secretary.

The local government plans to proceed with “reduced bureaucracy” in environmental licensing, which includes low-carbon activities.

What is happening in the south of the state, with the explosion of deforested and degraded areas, is mainly related to federal areas, and not to state areas, says Taveira. He admits, however, that the absence of the State and of inspection increases the illegal occupation of the land, with the advance of squatters.

“We are highly dependent on the Union, so there is a natural alignment”, says the secretary of Amazonas.

“We hope that the Lula government will listen to local governments. Problems are not solved just by surrounding forest areas. At COP27, our urgencies are to reduce emissions, keep the forest standing and seek funding for low-carbon activities to reduce poverty.”