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The next instalment in a series of United Nations climate change conferences will be COP30, taking place in Bélem, Brazil, in November. The city of 1.3 million people, known as the gateway to the Amazon River, is building a new central square that includes a metal walkway with a lookout, kiosks, rain gardens, a picnic area, an event space, a pet space, a playground and an outdoor gym.
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Also planned are improvements to the city’s rainwater drainage system and sewage network, a cycle path and a clean energy system.
But one item that has raised eyebrows is the construction of a new four-lane highway that will cut through tens of thousands of acres of protected Amazon rainforest.
The BBC reports that the aim of the project is to ease traffic to the city. COP events (the acronym stands for Conference of the Parties) routinely draw more than 50,000 attendees, including world leaders and activists.
The government for the local region said last November that the Avenida Liberdade, as the highway will be known, will be 13.3 kilometres long and “will have two lanes of traffic in each direction and shoulders, as well as exclusive lanes for cyclists, ecological paving on the cycle path, and solar-powered lighting.”
It added that the work was already 20 per cent complete and that “the earthmoving stage is underway.”
Vice-Governor Hana Tuma later called the Avenida Liberdade “a dream, a new exit to Belém” and “a transformation in our capital and metropolitan region.”
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However, the BBC interviewed Claudio Verequete, who lives about 200 metres from the new highway and made a living harvesting berries from trees that once occupied the area.
“Everything was destroyed,” he said. “Our harvest has already been cut down. We no longer have that income to support our family.” He added that he received no compensation from the government.
Not everyone is upset with the development, however. Dalci Cardoso da Silva, who runs a leather shoe stall, told the BBC: “The city as a whole is being improved, it is being repaired and a lot of people are visiting from other places. It means I can sell more and earn more.” He added that Bélem, once “beautiful, well-kept, well cared for,” has of late been “abandoned” and “neglected.”
Britain’s Daily Mail also quoted Adler Silveira, the state government’s infrastructure secretary, who called the highway an “important mobility intervention” and a “sustainable highway.” However, the Economic Times headlined its article on the development with the rhetorical question: “Irony at its peak?”
Less uncertain is that the highway will slice through what is known as the Metropolitan Belém Environmental Protection Area, which was created in 1993. A government document notes that in the area, “earthmoving, mining, dredging and excavation activities that may cause damage or degradation of the environment and/or danger to people or the environment are not permitted, nor are any industrial activity potentially capable of causing pollution, according to State Decree 1,551/1993.”
However, images posted by the BBC, as well as satellite views, show construction taking place within the boundaries of the protected area.
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