The discussions at the 1st Conference for the Transition Beyond Fossil Fuels, which are taking place this week in Santa Marta, Colombia, have a strategic role to play in consolidating the Road Map on the subject proposed for COP30 in Belém. For IPAM (Instituto de Pesquisa Ambiental da Amazônia), the event is historic for bringing together governments, institutions and scientists in favor of a just energy transition.
“The Santa Marta Conference, in addition to legitimizing and strengthening the road map agreed in Belém, places at the center of the debate the issue that should have been the stage for all the climate COPs: the elimination of dependence on fossil fuels. As emphasized by the Brazilian presidency at COP30, the time has come for implementation, and for this, the emergence of new mechanisms and instruments is necessary,” said André Guimarães, IPAM’s executive director.
For IPAM, the implementation of a transition away from fossil fuels is essential to prevent temperatures from continuing to rise and to ensure that forests, agricultural production and food security are no longer threatened by climate change.
Fossil fuels such as oil, natural gas and coal account for up to 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Keeping forests standing guarantees the storage of large amounts of carbon and helps regulate the climate, which is fundamental for food production.
“More oil, more carbon in the atmosphere, more temperature, less water in the system, dry forest, agriculture is compromised. When we talk about food security, part of the food insecurity that we will experience from now on is caused by rising fuel prices. And part of the increase in food prices in the coming years will certainly be linked to climate change,” he said.
IPAM studies show that Brazil has the capacity to convert 40 million hectares of degraded areas into productive assets for a green economy – even benefiting the transportation sector with biofuels such as ethanol, biomethane and biodiesel, which are cheaper and less vulnerable to variations in the price of a barrel of oil.
Also on the subject of overcoming economic dependence on investment in fossils, IPAM suggests the creation of Green Royalties, a fund of up to 20 billion dollars, which would compensate states and municipalities for not exploiting oil in the Equatorial Margin.
*Photo credit: Freepik
