SEEG (Greenhouse Effect Gas Emission Estimate System) , an initiative of Observatório do Clima supported by Instituto Clima e Sociedade, released new data showing Brazil’s emissions in 2015 during a workshop held on October 27. The event was held in Museu do Amanhã, in the Rio de Janeiro port area, in an innovative and dynamic format.

This year, the system’s highlights were the 3.5% increase in greenhouse effect gas emissions (GHG) when compared to the preceding year. The Workshop also highlighted a cooperation agreement between Observatório do Clima and Museu do Amanhã.

“In addition to the presentation of the new SEEG data, the event proposed a look into the future by organizing a panel on the challenges of the decarbonization of the Brazilian economy by 2050. Participating in this debate, with inspiring lectures, were people of very different backgrounds, such as the Climatologist and Professor Carlos Nobre, a profound expert on the field, Dr. Luiz Augusto Barroso, the president of the Energy Research Company (EPE), Pernambuco’s Secretary of the Environment, Sergio Xavier (who relayed details about the zero carbon project for Fernando de Noronha, and the rights and wrongs of this project so far), in addition to Sérgio Leitão, executive director of Instituto Escolhas,” analyzes Branca Americano, the Climate Policy Portfolio Coordinator at Instituto Clima e Sociedade.

In actual numbers, Brazil emitted 1.927 billion gross ton of CO2 equivalent (the sum of all greenhouse gases converted to carbon dioxide) in 2015, compared to 1.861 billion in 2014.

This increase comes precisely in the year when the country experienced one of the worst economic recessions in its history. At the same time, the country faced a 24% increase in deforestation rates in the Amazon in 2015, when compared to the previous year.

The energy sector, in turn, faced a drop in emissions – a fact that had not happened since 2009. The decrease of 5.3% in GHG emissions when compared to 2014 can be explained by both the economic crisis and the advance of renewable energy sources. In the transportation sector, there was a 7.4% reduction in emissions, especially due to the increase in the supply of alcohol fuel for light vehicles and a decrease in the use of diesel for cargo transportation. Electricity generation and industrial activities faced drops of 4.8% and 2.9%, respectively, mainly due to the slowdown in the economy.

The GHG emissions context in Brazil in 2015 confirms the ongoing process of stagnation seen in recent years, even after the emission reduction commitments made by the country during the Copenhagen Conference, organized by the United Nations in 2009.

Ana Toni, the executive director of Clima e Sociedade, participated as a mediator of the final session of the SEEG Workshop.