US, Brazil set targets for renewable energy use

OREANDA-NEWS. July 01, 2015. The US and Brazil today agreed to boost non-hydro renewables to 20pc of their generation mixes by 2030 as part of an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The countries announced the goals as Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff met US president Barack Obama in Washington, DC. The 20pc target represents nearly a tripling of non-hydro renewable energy by the US and more than a doubling for Brazil.

The leaders said the joint goal shows they are committed to achieving a new global climate agreement during UN negotiations in Paris in December.

"This shows that the world's major economies can begin to transcend some of the old divides and work together to confront the common challenge that we face," Obama said.

Rousseff said the announcement helps put the countries "in a position to materialize that agreement during the upcoming" Paris talks.

For the US, the target appears largely in line with the US Environmental Protection Agency's proposed Clean Power Plan for reducing power sector GHG emissions.

Under the proposal, which would require states to meet a CO2 intensity target by 2030, the share of non-hydro renewable generation would increase to about 24pc in 2030, from 8pc in 2013, according to a recent US Energy Information Administration analysis.

Brazil also said it would aim to eliminate illegal deforestation and restore and reforest 12mn hectares of forests by 2030 as part of its efforts under a new UN climate agreement being negotiated this year.

The countries said Brazil previewed its UN pledge during Rousseff's visit, but did not provide any other details beyond the forestry goals. The Brazil pledge will represent its "highest possible effort beyond its current actions," the White House said.

Brazil's Forest Code, which was passed into law in 2012, requires all landowners to have a minimum area covered with native vegetation, but does not stipulate zero deforestation. The percentage of native forest requirements is determined by the biome, or region, in which the property is located. Properties located in the Amazon biome are required to maintain 80pc of native forest, which means that 20pc of any property can be deforested legally.

Deforestation in the Amazon basin in May 2015 increased by 110pc compared with the corresponding period in 2014, according to Brazilian environmental watchdog Imazon.

In the first 10 months of the 2015-16 deforestation calendar year, Brazil lost 2,286km?, compared with 846km? in the corresponding year-earlier period.

In addition, the countries said they would launch a joint climate change initiative that will focus on "enhancing cooperation on sustainable land use, clean energy and climate adaptation."