Tens of thousands of acres of protected Amazon rainforest are being paved over in Brazil to make way for a new four-lane highway ahead of an upcoming climate summit.Belém, which is set to host the 30th UN Climate Change Conference with the Conference of the Parties (COP30),

As reported by the BBC, the state government of Pará cleared out eight miles of Amazon rainforest to build the highway. The BBC’s article has pictures of the clear-cut forest floor where logs have been piled up along a stretch of road that will soon hold concrete and passing cars.

Dubbed the Avenida Liberdade highway, the new stretch of highway cuts across tens of thousands of acres of rainforest located on the outskirts of Belem, where over 50,000 people, including world leaders, are anticipated to gather in November for the COP30 Climate Summit, according to a report from BBC News.

The Brazilian government is preparing to host the world’s largest climate summit uniquely – by chopping down tens of thousands of acres of the Amazon jungle for a new highway. The city of Belém, more than 1500 miles away from Rio de Janeiro, will host COP30 from November 10 to 21 later this year.

BELEM, Brazil (Reuters) - The Brazilian state hosting a United Nations climate summit this year has denied any connection between a new road cutting through a protected area of Brazilian rainforest and the COP30 summit that will gather world leaders in November.

A highway cutting through the Amazon rainforest for COP30 in Brazil has sparked criticism. Thousands of acres of forest have been cleared. While officials call it sustainable, conservationists highlight the hypocrisy of destroying nature to host a climate summit.