The seven municipal administrations that comprise the Greater ABC region of metropolitan São Paulo signed a letter of commitment with the Cities Friends of the Amazon program, sponsored by the Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) Greenpeace.
In the document the cities pledge to pass laws to limit timber consumption to sources that adopt sustainable management practices, especially if the timber comes from the Amazon rain forest, and to prohibit the purchase and use of illegal wood in bidding processes for public works.
The ABC region occupies third place among the country’s largest consumer markets for timber.
"We are shutting the doors to the most important consumer market, which is the city of São Paulo. We are already negotiating with Rio de Janeiro and shutting the doors to the ABC," said the coordinator of the Cities Friends of the Amazon program, Adriana Imparato.
The letter of commitment was signed by the mayors of Santo André, São Bernardo do Campo, São Caetano, Diadema, Rio Grande da Serra, Mauá, and Ribeirão Pires. The ceremony was held on Saturday (12) in the auditorium of the Greater ABC Inter-municipal Consortium, in Santo André.
The event was also marked by the participation of activists and graffiti artists, who painted the symbol of the program with the name of the campaign, "The Greater ABC sets an example: 7 Cities Friends of the Amazon," on a local sidewalk alongside the headquarters of the Consortium.
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