Environment

Brazil: New Project To Mitigate Polluting Gases From Cows

In Brazil there are more cows than people. This is why this new project to mitigate polluting gases from cows is urgent .

Cows in a wooded area

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EFE

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Leer en español: Brasil: Nuevo proyecto para mitigar los gases contaminantes de las vacas

The Government of the state of São Paulo, Brazil's economic engine, will create a scientific center to mitigate the effects of polluting gases produced by cows, official sources reported this Wednesday.

The project, in which research institutions and private sector companies collaborate, will have an initial investment of 20 million reais (about 4 million dollars).

The money will materialize in the Science Center for the Development of Climate Neutrality of Livestock Cutting in Tropical Regions (NeuTroPec).

According to the Government of São Paulo, it will be the only research entity focused on the reduction of gases produced by livestock activity in all of Latin America.

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It will aim to establish strategies to mitigate "the emission of greenhouse gases in cattle production systems", that is, those intended for consumption, through the development of new technologies and the transfer of knowledge.

The coordinator of NeuTroPec, Renata Helena Branco, stressed in a note the need to face "the environmental challenges derived from the high productivity" of livestock in the country.

In that sense, the new research center is a "response" that reconciles "economic development with environmental preservation", with the goal of "achieving carbon neutrality" in the sector.

An urgent measure in Brazil

According to a recent report by the Climate Observatory, a network that brings together around 80 environmental organizations, Brazil is the fifth largest emitter of methane in the world.

Nearly three-quarters come from agricultural activity, a fundamental sector for the economy of Brazil, which is one of the world's largest food producers.

Livestock farming accounts for 91.6% of the industry's emissions. Cattle burps alone account for more than half of the methane released into the atmosphere by Brazil, according to the aforementioned report.

Data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) indicate, on the other hand, that the country reached a record bovine population of 234.4 million cattle at the end of 2022, 4.3% more compared to the year former.

In this way, the numbers show that in Brazil there are more cows than people , since the country's population is 203.1 million, according to the last census.

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