Paulo Barreto has an unlikely backstory for a conservationist. In 1967, the year he was born, his parents and grandparents migrated to the Amazon in search of land for cattle ranching.
Growing up in the
states of Pará and Maranhão, Paulo spent the first decades of his life
observing the changing environment around him: degraded forests and river
erosion caused by deforestation to make way for pastureland.
While in those days many saw the people who cleared forests
for economic activity as development heroes, Paulo’s early experiences would
lead him to become a forest engineer and co-found Imazon (Amazon Institute of People
and the Environment), the conservation organisation where he still works as an
associate researcher. Paulo’s research is heavily focused on identifying the causes
of deforestation and on how Brazil can improve the protection of the Amazon.
With Bolsonaro’s inauguration less than a month away, Earthsight talked to Paulo as part of our ‘Brazil in Focus’ to gather his views on the
potential impacts of the upcoming presidency for the country’s forests.
Paulo sees risks as well as opportunities ahead. “In terms
of a historical trajectory, if the President can achieve everything he wants
there is a risk deforestation could reach some of its worst levels”, he told Earthsight.
But he also reminds us that “we […] need to look at the actions being taken to
counter what [Bolsonaro] wants to do. There is an obvious reaction from the
private sector in alliance with NGOs”.
Earthsight (ES): Will the new administration lead to a deterioration
of environmental and indigenous protections?
Paulo Barreto (PB): Bolsonaro has said he is going to constrain the action of environmental institutions, the question is whether he will manage. The evening after the first round of the elections he started saying he would end Ibama’s [Brazil’s federal environmental enforcement agency] “industry of fines” and put an end to all activism.
So his language is hostile to
environmental protection. He has said he would quit the Paris Agreement and
subordinate the Ministry of Environment to the Ministry of Agriculture. So
there is a risk of deterioration but we also need to look at the actions being
taken to counter what he wants to do.
There is an obvious reaction from the private sector in alliance with NGOs. Part of the private sector, for example those who export, fear that Bolsonaro’s actions could have implications for exports due to international pressure. Part of the private sector knows that climate change is happening and that Brazil needs to protect its forests.
A lot of these actors
are part of a coalition called Brasil Clima, Florestas e
Agricultura [Brazil Climate, Forests and Agriculture]. This coalition has
voiced opposition to some of Bolsonaro’s proposals.
The other thing is that environmental protection is in the Constitution; public prosecutors will certainly act. The big question is the justice system. The Brazilian justice system is very slow and inconsistent. Decisions are not consistent across different courts, sometimes the same court changes its decisions. This is a problem.
So in terms of institutional
protection, there’s a risk of the justice system not being a great guarantor of
protection. But I would say that I take Bolsonaro’s words as true that he wants
to undermine protections.
ES: You mentioned exporting companies; what
impact do you think the new presidency will have on the agribusiness sector’s
ability to influence environmental and indigenous legislation?
PB: Several companies seem excited about the possibility of weaker protections. On the other hand, exporting companies know there needs to be some moderation to this excitement. So I think there could be tensions within the sector. It is important to keep in mind that there is a difference between what the President can formally do and what his declarations and attitudes can lead to.
His discourse has already started certain trends in the
field regardless of real changes in regulations. There is a risk of violence;
confrontations are in the increase as people hope the new President will reduce
environmental law enforcement. This is a risk.
ES: Do you believe the new presidency will have
an impact on current levels of deforestation?
PB: There is a risk deforestation will increase.
INPE has carried out a study considering weaker regulations and market forces,
and estimated deforestation could increase threefold. So in terms of a
historical trajectory, if the President reduce environmental enforcement there
is a risk deforestation could reach some of its worst levels. This will
certainly generate strong reactions, from society and markets too, so it will
be a complicated situation.
ES: What about the potential for new alliances
between Brazilian and international civil society to counter these potential
threats?
PB: If he weakens laws, protection could mainly
be in the hands of the private sector, but if the private sector fails to act
things will get a lot worse. So the private sector will be under a lot of
national and international pressure.
