17 February 2010: The UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has published a report titled “Millennium Development Goals: Advances in Environmentally Sustainable Development in Latin America and the Caribbean.”

The study, published in Spanish, highlights that despite the growth in protected areas and success in eliminating ozone depleting substances (ODS), the high deforestation rates, which duplicate world averages, and the sustained increase of carbon dioxide emissions in the region are impeding compliance with the seventh Millennium Development Goal (MDG7) on environmental sustainability. Regarding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, Latin America’s per capita emissions are substantially lower than those in developed nations and, while emissions are growing in absolute terms, emission intensity per unit of GDP presents a descending trend. However, the study notes that lack of data on emissions from land use change and deforestation may put these results into question. [The Report] [ECLAC Press Release]