Brazil pledges to slash emissions, but will count old reductions

Even before Brazil announced its COP 21 target has already made impressive strides in reducing deforestation and its associated emissions, achieving an average decline in deforestation of 16 per cent a year from 2005-2014.

“We have been diversifying renewable sources in our energy mix, which is one of the cleanest in the world”, Rousseff said.

Brazil, the world’s seventh biggest greenhouse gas polluter, intends to reach those goals by boosting renewable energy sources including solar, wind and biomass and continuing to reduce deforestation in the Amazon region.

The country, which has been at the centre of global efforts to halt widespread illegal deforestation, also promised to halt illegal deforestation and reforest 12 million hectares of land by 2030.

Political uncertainty has aggravated what is expected to be Brazil’s longest recession since the 1930s, and was cited by Standard & Poor’s as part of their decision to downgrade Latin America’s largest economy to junk status.

On Sunday, Rousseff also pledged to increase the country’s share of renewable power to 23 percent by 2030 from 15 percent today.

However, she warned that reforestation pledge was “notably weaker” than what could be achieved. “Brazil should rapidly shift away from high-carbon energy investment in line with the global efforts to slow global warming”.

Traditionally, Brazil is the first country to kick off the annual high-level debate and this year is no different, with President Dilma Rousseff due to begin her speech at around 9 am local time.

“China is willing to step up communication and coordination with all parties involved, including Brazil, and in accordance with the principles of common and differentiated responsibility, equity and respective capabilities, to contribute to the success of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris at the end of this year”, Hong said. For example, the USA has pledged to reduce its emissions by 26-28% between 2005 and 2025.

She said that global challenges such as conflict in the Middle East and Europe’s refugee crisis could be better solved by more collective action.