São Paulo, Sep 4 (EFE) – The Amazon, the largest tropical forest on Earth, has been losing ground to destruction for decades. But what is the value of keeping it alive? One striking figure: it evaporates 20 billion tons of water every day.
Brazil wants to put that question before the world at the upcoming UN Climate Conference (COP30), to be held in November in the Amazonian city of Belém. At the summit, Brazil will propose that nations pay to conserve tropical forests through an international fund.
The Amazon’s invisible contribution
Experts speaking Thursday at the 3rd Latin American Green Economy Forum (FLEV), organized by Agencia EFE in São Paulo, warned that few people understand the Amazon’s incalculable contribution. Beyond regulating the planet’s climate, the rainforest sustains agriculture across South America.
Tasso Azevedo, general coordinator of MapBiomas and co-author of The Silence of the Chainsaw, said the Amazon evaporates 20 billion tons of water daily.
“To do that with energy, you would need six months of the planet’s entire electricity supply to provide the same service the Amazon does in one day,” he explained.
That water vapor rises through the trees’ transpiration, forming “flying rivers” – streams of humidity that bring rainfall to the region. Without this process, vast agricultural areas in Brazil and Argentina would be at serious risk.
The cost of keeping forests standing
So how much is it worth to preserve tropical forests instead of pursuing an economic model based on intensive agriculture, mining, and deforestation?
“It’s very difficult to answer, but the idea is that if someone protects the forest, they should receive compensation of real value, though it will never match the forest’s true worth,” Azevedo said.
To that end, Brazil will launch at COP30 the Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF), a new global mechanism to finance tropical forest conservation. The fund aims to pool public and private investment and channel resources directly to those who protect forests, including Indigenous peoples.
Obstacles to sustainability in the Amazon
Still, Cláudio Angelo, international policy coordinator at the Climate Observatory and co-author of The Silence of the Chainsaw, stressed the barriers to adopting sustainable lifestyles in the Brazilian Amazon.
He pointed to the “conservative” livestock sector and the fact that buying land and clearing it remains very cheap.
“The incentives to change behavior are very low,” he said.
Agribusiness lobbies have also gained influence in Congress, pushing for measures to weaken environmental regulation.
Between 1985 and 2023, the Amazon lost more than 88 million hectares of forest, an area nearly the size of Venezuela, according to MapBiomas Amazonía, part of the Amazon Geo-Referenced Socio-Environmental Information Network (RAISG).
In the same period, farmland expanded by 598% and cattle ranching by 298% in areas where forest cover shrank.
Forum sponsors
The 3rd FLEV is sponsored by:
-
ApexBrasil, Brazil’s trade and investment promotion agency.
-
Norte Energia, operator of the Belo Monte hydroelectric plant.
-
Lots Group, a logistics company providing decarbonization solutions.
It is also supported by Imaflora, the Climate Observatory, and IBMEC University, which is hosting the event at its São Paulo campus. EFE