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COP26: Greenpeace condemns the green light for another decade of forest destruction | Greenpeace int.

Glasgow, Scotland - COP26 saw a spate of forest announcements today - including a new agreement between governments, including Brazil, to stop and reverse deforestation by 2030.

In response from Glasgow to the announcement, Greenpeace Brazil General Manager Carolina Pasquali said:

“There is a very good reason why Bolsonaro felt comfortable signing this new contract. It allows for another decade of forest destruction and is non-binding. In the meantime, the Amazon is already on the brink and cannot survive the years of deforestation. Indigenous peoples are demanding that 2025% of the Amazon be protected by 80 and they are right, that's what is needed. The climate and nature cannot afford this deal. "

The "new" agreement will replace the New York Declaration on Forests from 2014 (although Brazil did not sign at the time). The 2014 statement made a commitment that governments cut forest loss in half by 2020 and support the corporate sector in ending deforestation in supply chains by 2020 - yet the rate of natural forest loss has increased dramatically in recent years. The new supply chain announcements seem run out of teeth today and are unlikely to undo the years of corporate failure on this issue.

Brazil's greenhouse gas emissions rose 2020% in 9,5, fueled by the destruction of the Amazon - the result of deliberate political decisions by the Bolsonaro government. Given its track record, Greenpeace warns that it will barely abide by this entirely voluntary agreement and that it will embark on policies that will put Brazil on the path to delivering on the new pledge. In fact, he is currently trying to push through a legislative package designed to accelerate forest loss.

Another gaping hole in the package is the lack of measures to reduce the demand for industrial meat and dairy products - an industry that is driving the destruction of ecosystems through livestock farming and the use of soy as animal feed.

Greenpeace UK Head of Forests Anna Jones said:

"Until we stop the expansion of industrial agriculture, switch to a plant-based diet and reduce the amount of industrial meat and dairy products we consume, the rights of indigenous peoples will continue to be threatened and nature will continue to be destroyed rather than given the opportunity to to recover and recover. "

New funds were also announced today for countries with significant forest areas - including Brazil and the Congo Basin. Anna Jones said:

“The amounts brought forward are a tiny fraction of what is required to protect nature around the world. Given the history of many of these governments disregarding or attacking indigenous rights and destroying forests, they still have a long way to go to ensure that these funds do not simply fill the pockets of forest destroyers. The funds pledged by governments under the Global Forest Finance Pledge appear to come from their aid budgets, so it is unclear whether this is actually new money. And there are no guarantees that private sector donations will not simply be used to offset direct emissions reductions. "

A moratorium on new logging concessions was lifted by the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in July, and activists are concerned that the offer of new money will not be made conditional on the reinstatement of the ban.

A Greenpeace Africa spokesman said:

“The lifting of the moratorium puts a tropical forest the size of France at risk, threatens indigenous and local communities, and risks future zoonotic disease outbreaks, which can cause pandemics. With so much at stake, the Democratic Republic of the Congo government should only be offered new money if the ban on new logging concessions is restored. "

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Photos: Greenpeace

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