United Nations经济和社会事务部 可持续发展


Commission on Sustainable Development - 19th session
Intergovernmental Policy Meeting
1 March 2011
Statement by Mr. Paulo José Chiarelli, First Secretary, PM of Brazil to the UN
Mr. Chairman,
1. My delegation aligns itself with the statement delivered by the G-77 and China.
2. The SG report and the presentations this morning provide a comprehensive view of the
many measures for promoting sustainable transport, such as BRT, modal shifts,
investment in infrastructures and nascent technologies. One option that I'd like to highlight
is biofuels.
3. The Secretariat report states that: ?[?] only a limited number of countries have
favorable climatic conditions and the land and water resources necessary for large-scale
biofuel production? (par. 41). This conclusion does not reflect what many have experienced
on the ground. Estimates indicate that over 100 countries, mostly in the tropics, have the
natural conditions to produce biofuels. In many, biofuels could play an important role in
transport, with benefits for access to energy, income generation and food security,
especially in rural areas and for smallholder farmers, and reducing GHG emissions,
contributing to the achievement of the MDGs.
4. Clean fuel technologies are not only available in developed countries. Differently from
the high entry costs associated with other nascent fuel and engine technologies, mature
technologies such as biofuels and 'flex-fuel' engines are relatively simple alternatives, in
practice in many developing countries. Brazil's successful track record has informed our
cooperation with many countries to promote such benefits
5. The report also states that: ?the development of alternative fuels, produced in a
sustainable way, including [...] ethanol and bio-diesel, can offer diversification of transport
fuels as part of an array of options for sustainable transport? (par. 76).
6. Challenges to the development of biofuels include lagging infrastructure, lack of
capacity for assessing feasibility of biofuel production and access to technologies and
7. To respond to these challenges, one policy option that CSD-19 should highlight is to
stimulate countries to pursue international partnerships for voluntary sharing of
knowledge and experiences on sustainable biofuel production, as an instrument to
eradicate poverty and promote sustainable development, through international
cooperation, in particular South-South and triangular cooperation.
Questions to the panelists:
a) In the rail sector, what is the major energy source for powering locomotives and
what are the opportunities for increasing the role of renewables?
b) In the aviation sector, what are the main policy barriers for full-scale, commercial
application of biofuel technology?
Thank you.