In a meeting with the presidents of parliaments of Norway, Dag Tarje Andersen, and of the Sami People, Egil Olli, the minister of the Environment, Izabella Teixeira, said yesterday (April 12) that initiatives such as the Amazon Fund can show the world that Brazil is able to fulfill its commitments and reduce the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest.
She explained to the Norwegian delegation that the Amazon Region Protected Areas Program (ARPA) is part of Brazil's strategy to create new Conservation Units (UCs). She added that 10 million hectares of protected areas will be created in the Amazon in the next 10 years, in the second phase of ARPA. Over the past seven years, Brazil was responsible for creating 70% of all conservation units created in the world. According to the minister, the Amazon Fund is the basis for the implementation of the Program.
Norway was the first country to donate to the Amazon Fund. In the first year, the country donated US$ 140 million. The Norwegian government announced, however, that its donations could total US$ 1 billion by 2015, subject to the reduction of deforestation in previous years. Izabella highlighted the reduction of 51% in Amazon deforestation from August 2009 to February 2010 compared to same period previously.
The minister explained to President Andersen that the drop is the result both of the actions of environmental crime suppression performed by the Interministerial Commission to Fight Environmental Crimes and Offenses (CICCIA) and of the sustainable alternatives offered to municipalities and forest peoples. She mentioned the Green Arc Operation, which provides sustainable development alternatives for the 43 municipalities that registered the highest deforestation rates in 2008.
Redes Sociais