Brazil's carbon emissions fell by 8% in 2022, but the rate is still the third-highest since 2005. The reduction was driven by a decrease in deforestation and a decrease in the use of thermal power plants, as shown in a report by the System of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Estimates (Seeg), compiled by the Climate Observatory and released on Thursday (23) in Brasília.
Brazil emitted 2.3 billion gross tons of greenhouse gases (GtCO2e) in 2022, an 8% decrease compared to 2021 when 2.5 billion tons of carbon were released into the atmosphere. Nevertheless, the rate recorded in the last year of Jair Bolsonaro's government is still the third-highest since 2005, ranking below only 2019 and 2021, also during the former president's tenure.
The reduction last year was propelled by a drop in the deforestation rate in the Amazon and abundant rainfall that filled hydroelectric reservoirs, leading to a record decrease in the activation of coal and gas-fired thermal power plants.
Considering net emissions, which deduct carbon removals by regenerated forests, conservation units, and indigenous lands, the reduction is 11%, from 1.9 GtCO2e to 1.7 GtCO2e in the same period. This measure is used by the federal government in the Paris Agreement's nationally determined contributions (NDC), with Brazil committing to 1.3 GtCO2e of net emissions in 2025 and 1.2 GtCO2e in 2030.