In a deeply ironic development, construction of a new four-lane highway slicing through the Amazon rainforest is underway to prepare the Brazilian city of Belém for the COP30 climate summit—an event intended to promote global climate action. The road, cutting through tens of thousands of acres of protected forest, has sparked an uproar among conservationists and local communities, who say the destruction contradicts the very essence of the summit’s mission.

The summit, scheduled for November 2025, is expected to attract over 50,000 attendees, including heads of state and climate leaders from around the world. To accommodate the influx, Brazil’s Pará state government has launched a massive infrastructure overhaul, including the Avenida Liberdade highway, which spans more than 13 km through pristine rainforest and wetlands.

Officials have branded the highway “sustainable,” claiming it will include wildlife crossings, solar-powered lighting, and bike lanes. But on the ground, bulldozers and diggers are leveling vast swathes of rainforest, displacing wildlife and disrupting local ecosystems.

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Claudio Verequete, a resident living just 200 meters from the construction zone, laments the destruction of açaí trees that once supported his family’s livelihood. “Everything was destroyed. Our harvest has already been cut down,” he said. His community won't even have access to the road, which is walled off on both sides. “There will be benefits for the trucks, not for us.”

The new road severs two protected forest zones, raising alarms among scientists. Prof. Silvia Sardinha, a wildlife vet and researcher, warns the highway will fragment animal habitats and complicate efforts to rehabilitate injured wildlife. “Land animals will no longer be able to cross to the other side,” she explained, “reducing the areas where they can live and breed.”

Despite these concerns, Brazil’s federal government is investing over $81 million in the region’s airport expansion, and constructing a 500,000 sq-m city park, hotels, and a revamped port to welcome cruise ships. Officials claim these upgrades will leave a lasting legacy for Belém.

Adler Silveira, Pará’s infrastructure secretary, insists the highway is necessary to “modernize” Belém for the summit and beyond. “It’s a sustainable highway, an important mobility intervention,” he said.

Some local business owners in Belém’s famous Ver-o-peso market see the upside. “The city is being improved… it means I can sell more and earn more,” said Dalci Cardoso da Silva, a leather vendor. Others like João Alexandre Trindade da Silva, a herbal medicine seller, acknowledge the tension: “We hope the decisions taken are really put into practice, so the planet can breathe a little better.”

But as critics point out, the carbon cost of flying thousands of delegates and building new infrastructure in the world’s most important carbon sink may ultimately undermine the summit’s climate message.

As world leaders prepare to gather in the heart of the Amazon, many ask: at what cost are we hosting this conversation?

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