The Brazilian Business Council for Sustainable Development (CEBDS) launched, this Tuesday (12), in Rio de Janeiro, the pioneering study Long-term low-carbon development strategy. Pointing out five main paths, the publication, prepared with the support of the Instituto Clima e Sociedade (ICS), also outlines the roles of the business sector and different spheres of government to contribute as much as possible to the neutralization of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions ) by 2050.
“In addition to the commitments already made in the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), the country needs to establish a long-term development strategy, as provided for in the Paris Agreement. This study points out ways. The business sector has the appetite and willingness to implement these actions, but synergy between different sectors is essential. Coordination and network actions are necessary to change the current scenario”, highlighted the president of CEBDS, Marina Grossi.
https://www.facebook.com/CEBDSBR/videos/1956806241011147/
The coordinator of the CEBDS Energy and Climate Change Thematic Chamber, Laura Albuquerque, highlighted that the study launched works with the 2050 scenario and advances the reflections made by CEBDS in the publication, launched at the beginning of the year, Opportunity and Challenges of the Brazilian NDC goals for the Business Sector, whose horizon is 2030.
“The NDC is just the halfway point, but we want to go further. CEBDS is a cutting-edge institution and in this study it is clear that a long-term strategy has to be linked to a greater ambition to reduce greenhouse gas emissions”, Laura pointed out.
https://www.facebook.com/CEBDSBR/videos/1956823721009399/
The study indicates five elements considered fundamental to the strategy and indicating directions and solutions in each one. Are they:
Reducing deforestation and the role of forest and soil sinks
The study points to reducing deforestation, with the elimination of illegal deforestation, as the highest priority for low-carbon development in the country. The companies interviewed unanimously and strongly point out that the country's ambition to be able to present good indicators after 2030 depends on the success in eliminating illegal deforestation. For this to happen, some measures are highlighted as fundamental in the text of the study. Among them are the requirement for a seal of origin for forest products, the incentive for sustainable forest management activities, the creation of credit lines in the ABC plan (Low Carbon Agriculture), the regulation on the use of the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the use of remote sensing for electronic monitoring of deforestation, in addition to institutional and legal reform for the trial and execution of administrative and criminal processes of illegal deforestation.
Bioeconomy and international trade and circular economy
The integration of climate policies with foreign trade policies is highlighted in the text of the study as another crucial point for long-term low-carbon development in Brazil. Furthermore, it considers it important that development policies aim to requalify production in the country, including its export agenda, returning it to the bioeconomy, an area in which Brazil is highly competitive. To capture all these opportunities for the country, a consistent national policy to promote the bioeconomy is essential, however.
Such a policy, mentioned in the publication, must face the challenges of establishing an advanced regulatory framework for the use of biotechnology and forming human capital by encouraging science and promoting entrepreneurship in the area. The government has an important role, according to the survey, to minimize legal uncertainty by establishing rules consistent with clarity that will allow academia and companies to anticipate the impact and guarantee the legality of their activities.
Among the laws and standards to be improved and/or updated are the Regulatory Framework for Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing, the Biosafety Law (Law 11,105/2005), the Industrial Property Law (Law 9279/1996) and the Innovation Law (Law 10,973/2004). This will allow, for example, the improvement of access to genetic heritage, the speeding up of the patent granting process, the possibility of using contemporary technology transfer mechanisms, among other aspects.
In the publication, circular economy practices are mentioned and should guide the industry in the long term, allowing cost reduction with the reuse of materials used as raw materials and fuel. Companies also see the reuse of materials and the use of materials with a lower carbon footprint as long-term opportunities for low-carbon development in industry. Co-processing must be part of efforts by public authorities at the municipal level, as city halls must allow the use of waste more widely, and also at the state level, to facilitate the interstate transport of waste for use in co-processing.
Energy transition
The text projects greater pressure on the energy sector to develop in order to emit less GHG from 2030 onwards. Although Brazil currently stands out for the high share of renewable sources in its energy matrix, driven by the high share of the source water in its electrical matrix, all long-term projections conclude that the expansion of supply will not be based on this source.
A necessary measure, aimed at slowing down emissions from the energy system, is the elimination of subsidies for fossil fuels (SDGs 7 and 13). In 2014, the Brazilian government contributed US$27 billion in subsidies for fossil fuels, among the largest amounts of all G20 countries (CLIMATE TRANSPARENCY, 2017). To increase its environmental performance in the electricity sector, it is necessary for Brazil to explore its enormous generation potential for solar and wind sources.
It is estimated that Brazilian wind potential is greater than 500GW, with 52% of this potential concentrated in the Northeast region (ANEEL, 2008). Currently, there are only around 12.4GW of wind power installed in the country (ABEEÓLICA, 2017). Even though this source has grown significantly in recent years, as already mentioned, the numbers are still far from the real use of its potential.
Redirecting Resources to Low Carbon Investments
Economic Instruments:
The companies interviewed for the study unanimously placed the adoption of a pricing mechanism as fundamental, with the inclusion of forestry sector offsets (SDGs 7, 12 and 13). Carbon pricing reduces the economic cost of climate policies by allowing sectors and companies with lower abatement costs to contribute more to emissions reduction efforts than agents with higher costs. Pricing creates a more effective long-term incentive for technological innovation than purely emissions restriction policies.
Financial Instruments:
Highlight the importance of the government making more intelligent use of financial instruments to direct and guarantee resources for low-carbon investments. Currently, high capital costs in Brazil represent a barrier to investment in low-carbon technologies, which is intensified in long-term investments, such as infrastructure projects, for example. The study bets on the creation of a fund guaranteeing low-carbon investments that would allow their acceleration in Brazil, since their collateral would be covered by the fund. This guarantees companies access to new sources of financing, including international ones, greater security for taking credit, and a lower perception of risk for financial institutions.
The publication was based on studies with long-term scenarios already developed for Brazil that address the energy, transport, industry and agricultural and forestry sectors. Lessons learned from international long-term strategies already submitted and interviews carried out with professionals from key sectors such as forestry, electricity and the cement and steel industries were also analyzed.
Check out the photos of the event:
[slideshow_deploy id=’8956′]
