Ahead of the COP30 Climate Summit in Belem, Brazil, the developers have carved a four-lane highway through protected areas of Amazon’s rainforest, making it easier for participants to travel.

One of several infrastructure projects to be quickly tracked for the summit, the highway aims to ease the expected crowding of more than 50,000 participants in November. The state government has argued that the road is a “sustainable” development with wildlife intersections, bike lanes and solar lighting, but local critics have argued that it is in conflict with the very mission of the Climate Congress. According to To the BBC. (Related: Biden spends the expense of waning the presidency by paying $1,000,000 to preserve the Amazon rainforest)

“Everything has been destroyed,” Claudio Vere Ekete, a local resident whose family once relied on acai trees that stood where the roads slashed through the forest, told the BBC. “Our harvest has already been reduced. We no longer have the income to support our families.”

The highway known as Avenida Freedom has been shelved multiple times in the past due to environmental concerns, but according to the outlet, it has revived as part of a broader push to modernize Belem ahead of the COP30. State officials say the city’s transformation leaves a lasting legacy, including expanded airports, new hotels and unrated ports to accommodate cruise ships.

Adler Silveyra, infrastructure secretary for Para, Brazil, defended the highway project in a statement to the BBC called “Critical Mobility Interventions” that will benefit local residents after the summit has concluded.

Satellite images from the area appear to show miles of sunny land where dense rainforests once stood. Beyond immediate deforestation, parents warn that roads can allow for further illegal logging and land speculation, and fragment ecosystems essential for carbon absorption, the BBC reported.

“From the moment of deforestation, there is a loss,” Silvia Sardinia, a wildlife veterinarian at the university near the new highway site, told the BBC. “Terratic animals will no longer be able to cross the other side and will no longer be able to reduce the number of areas they can live and reproduce.”

The annual UN Conference on Climate Change brings together world leaders, lawmakers, scientists and industry representatives to negotiate global climate policies. The discussion usually centers on topics such as greenhouse gas emissions, gradual fossil fuels, industrial adaptation, climate benchmarks, implementation of international agreements such as the Paris Agreement, and deforestation. At previous summits, speakers have advocated policies such as taxing meat products and naming extreme heat events to raise awareness of temperature changes. Afghan Taliban officials also joined COP29 in 2024. This is because UN agencies reportedly considered lifting funds to combat the climate crisis. Previous COP28 included discussions on sustainable yachts.

The Amazon rainforest, previously known as the “Lungs of the Earth,” is reportedly producing more carbon dioxide than it absorbs for deforestation. According to To the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (Related: UN Summit speakers argue that “naming extreme thermal events” will help combat climate change)

Participants at the 2025 Climate Summit are expected to include representatives of almost all UN member states and corporate leaders in the renewable energy industry, such as Siemens Gamesa.

“It’s an Amazon police officer, not an Amazon police officer.” press release. The COP30 Summit is scheduled for November 10th to November 21st.

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