Commission debated government actions to develop the credit market and reduce polluting gas emissions
The regulation of the law that deals with the Brazilian Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading System () was the subject of the public hearing on Wednesday (8.Oct.2025) in the Senate. Government representatives cited the challenges and difficulties in implementing the regulation, but stated that the objective is for it to be inclusive and fair. The senators, however, asked for more speed in establishing the new rules.
The debate was promoted by the CRA (Senate Agriculture and Agrarian Reform Committee) at the request of the committee’s president, Zequinha Marinho (Podemos-PA), and senator Luis Carlos Heinze (PP-RS).
According to the BNDES (National Bank for Economic and Social Development) website, carbon credit markets allow companies, organizations and individuals to offset their greenhouse gas emissions by purchasing credits created by emissions reduction and/or carbon capture projects. The idea is to transfer the social cost of emissions to emitting agents, helping to contain global warming and climate change.
The senators who participated in the hearing cited the importance of regulation and asked the government for agility in its institution. Luis Carlos Heinze stated that the regulation of the carbon market is in Brazil’s interest and that, for him, it is an important asset that the country needs to explore.
Zequinha Marinho said that the voluntary market has already advanced a lot, but declared that the government needs to act to establish regulation: “They say that the government only uses pressure. Without pressure, the beans won’t cook. So, let’s put pressure on”.
Senator Flávio Arns (PSB-PR) demanded that the government create a body responsible for regulating the carbon market, as established by law.
Senator Hamilton Mourão (Republicanos-RS) declared that the current government is known for its interest in topics related to the environment and climate change and that, therefore, it should be more agile in these matters.
For Antônio Marcos Mendonça, representative of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, the law that established the Brazilian Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading System represented a major advance for climate and environmental policy. He stated that one of the challenges of regulation is the implementation of a measurement methodology with reliable criteria. He said that MCTI, in partnership with the Ministry of Mines and Energy, offers a system for companies to estimate their carbon emissions.
Jorge Caetano Júnior, from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, stated that this regulation has been discussed by an interministerial group. He also said that well-structured regulation will contribute to increasing legal certainty and enabling a more efficient agricultural credit market. He also stated that the SBCE is a regulatory framework with the potential to open new opportunities for economic development, “balancing environmental ambition and economic security”.
“These credits can be acquired by sectors subject to targets or can be freely traded on the market, transforming sustainable practices into valued economic assets”declared the representative of Agriculture.
The Project Manager of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Beatriz Soares da Silva, said that the regulation should be carried out by a management body specially created for this purpose – which has not yet occurred. For now, the respective guidelines are the responsibility of the Ministry of Finance. He declared that the Ministry of the Environment is setting up a department to specifically deal with issues related to the SBCE.
Family farming
Ana Elsa Munarini stated that the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Farming is listening to all sectors involved to produce fairer and more inclusive regulations. He stated that the regulatory process is complex and “There is not just one way”. He said that the government is careful to avoid a parallel carbon market. In his view, it is important that regulations embrace the diversity that the carbon market demands, with emphasis on family producers.
New audience
During the meeting, CRA approved a request to hold a public hearing on carbon market regulation with representatives from the private sector.
With information from .
