Brazilian states will respect the Paris Agreement

The governor of Pernambuco, Paulo Câmara (PSB), said during an event in New York on Tuesday morning that the Brazilian states will fulfill their role in the Paris Agreement.

In a side event, the speech happened at the same time as President Bolsonaro opened the UN General Assembly with attacks on indigenous people, France (which launched the day before an alliance for the Amazon) and with the denial of the fires in the biome.

"Faced with the risk of regression on the part of our national government, the Brazilian states decide to assume their role resolutely," said the House.

He spoke on behalf of 11 Brazilian states (the nine states of the Northeast region and the Holy Spirit), which sent a letter to the Americans confirming that they were represented by a Chamber.

The Chamber's speech is also supported by the Governors for Climate movement, which since April has been mobilizing Brazilian states to ensure the implementation of climate policies that respond to the commitments made by Brazil in the Paris Agreement, such as combating illegal deforestation and promoting renewable energy.

"The governor of Pernambuco makes a counterpoint to Bolsonaro. He reaches out to the planet, in contrast to those who spit it out," says Alfredo Sirkis, director of Centro Brasil no Clima, an organization that supports the movement of governors with Abema (Brazilian Association of State Environmental Entities).

The event was convened by the Climate Action Alliance and brought together representatives of international organizations and governments to discuss the challenge of making the world 'carbon neutral' by 2050.

The deadline for neutralization of gas emissions that generate global warming is given by scientific reports of the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) as a limit to avoid the most disastrous consequences of climate change.

Carbon neutrality does not necessarily mean a complete reduction of emissions, but it can also happen through the offsetting of emissions through carbon storage measures, mainly through the planting of trees.

The House announced that it is transforming the island of Fernando de Noronha into a 'carbon neutral' territory and that soon all the waste from the island will be recycled.

He also stated that Pernambuco and the Northeastern states will not only fulfill their role in the Brazilian targets in the Paris Agreement, but will also become carbon neutral in the long term.

"So let us work to establish the necessary alliances with other Brazilian states, municipalities, private initiative, third sector and academia. We will do this by attracting investments for a new economy, sustainable, generating jobs, income and quality of life for our people," said the governor.

The Governors for Climate movement is analogous to the response given by U.S. governors in 2017, when President Trump announced that the United States would leave the Paris Agreement. The We are still in movement brings together U.S. governors, mayors, universities and business and was also represented at the event on Tuesday.

Souce: Folha de São Paulo