The leading role of Brazilian forests in the global climate agenda

ROBERTO S. WAACK* AND BETO VERÍSSIMO**

Brazil is the quintessential forest country. Not only does it hold the largest massif of native tropical rainforests on the planet, but it also has other forest formations in the Cerrado (scrubland), Caatinga (woodland), Pantanal (wetland), and even the Pampas (prairie) biomes. They represent around 500 million hectares of native forests, or almost 60% of Brazil’s territory. Additionally, Brazil is a world leader in planted forestry, particularly with exotic species that have high productivity and contribute to social and economic development. And, more recently, the participation of the forest restoration sector has grown, taking advantage of the window of opportunity in the carbon market. 

The forest cover diversity in Brazil defines the forest continuum concept, which includes preserved native forests, activities of forest restoration with native species, and also the forestry activity with native and exotic species, aimed at many different industrial purposes. To this continuum are added activities that combine forests with the production of food, fibers, and energy, in diverse agroforestry systems. In all fronts, Brazil has the most advanced technologies for conservation, restoration, and planting, positioning itself among the most competitive in the world.

Brazil’s forests play a central role in the global climate agenda. These forests store vast carbon reserves, regulate rainfall and water cycles, and are home to one of the greatest biodiversities on the planet. In addition, forests, particularly the Amazon, provide a fundamental environmental service to the Brazilian economy by regulating rainfall patterns. In fact, the forest returns the water it collects from the rain to the atmosphere, which allows wind currents to carry moisture to much of Brazil, in a phenomenon known as “flying rivers”.  These “flying rivers” play an essential role by providing rainfall across much of Brazil, enabling hydroelectric power generation, agricultural production, river navigation, and water supply for industrial and home uses.

The conservation of native forests is intrinsically linked to the presence of indigenous peoples, who have been the guardians of their conservation. Furthermore, Brazil has programs for the conservation of its forest heritage (Brazil holds the largest absolute area of protected areas on the planet) and has led initiatives for payment for avoided deforestation, such as the Amazon Fund and, more recently, the Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF). Brazil is also a benchmark in policies to fight deforestation, notably with the Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon (PPCDAm). Brazil has made progress in the production of technical and scientific knowledge in f ields such as conservation, management, forest restoration, and forestry.

For private land, Brazil has a legal framework for conservation that is a reference in the world – the Forest Code – which seeks to guarantee permanent protection areas and forest reserves in all rural properties. Regarding public land, Brazil has a legal framework that ensures the protection of Indigenous Lands. It also has one of the largest sets of Conservation Units in the world and a legal framework, the National System of Conservation Units (SNUC), which is internationally respected.

In recent years, Brazil has led the way in forest restoration using native species, with a unique dynamism driven by the combination of mainstream f inancial players with highly professional operators. In the field of exotic species forestry, it holds the leading position worldwide in pulp exports, with operations and companies that have significant technological and economic power. Brazil has shown an undeniable capacity for domesticating exotic species such as eucalyptus and pine, and utilizes production models recognized by the most demanding existing certification systems.

For all these forestry models, Brazil leads globally in the field of monitoring systems, which are broadly disseminated, public, and transparent, developed from civil society initiatives, in a good combination with governmental mechanisms.

In general, no country combines the natural, geographical, academic excellence (in ecology, management and forestry), technological, and business conditions like Brazil, which, in addition, has a framework of institutionalized public policies that allow it to aspire to an even greater share of the forestry industry. Brazil already holds the largest stock of forest carbon on the planet and could increase this stock if it achieves its targets of drastically reducing deforestation in the national territory – combining this effort with ongoing actions to increase carbon removal from the atmosphere through activities of forest restoration with native species and forestry.

This document presents facts and data related to the main segments of the Brazilian forestry sector. It seeks to show the effective integration and synergies between the many forest formations that make up the forest continuum. At the same time, it seeks to expose the challenges and paths for Brazil to achieve, as soon as possible, the forest transition (that is, to reverse the curve of forest cover loss and start to have a net forest gain), with an increase in carbon stock in the forests. Brazil’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) is highly dependent on forests. Brazil could achieve its NDC targets with strong deforestation control, which would allow surplus forest carbon to be exported. In fact, Brazil has the greatest comparative advantages in the world to lead in the removal of carbon from the atmosphere through forest restoration.

We hope that this document will contribute to the opportunity that COP, held in the world’s leading forest country, offers for the consolidation of a wish: that natural capital and nature-based solutions, represented by forests, become a highly attractive asset class for the financial market. At the same time, that it points to alternatives so that the peoples who live in the most forested regions can achieve the best development indicators in Brazil, instead of experiencing the harmful environmental and economic consequences resulting from deforestation. And that the ambition to be the country with the largest forest carbon stock in the world provides the best opportunities for removing carbon from the atmosphere through the growth of forest restoration and forestry activities.