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It is wrong to attribute a significant part of the increase in Amazon deforestation to biofuels, as Mr. Grunwald does. First, suggestions that Brazil is a major culprit in global warming are not supported by scientific facts or reliable statistics. Second, the growth rate of Brazilian emissions has been on the decline primarily because of decreasing rates of Amazon rain-forest deforestation, which is the main source of carbon emissions in Brazil, and increasing use of ethanol fuel. Furthermore, from 1970 to 2005 the use of ethanol in our energy mix has averted the emission of 644 million tons of CO2, the equivalent of Canada's annual emissions. When compared with the unsustainable energy patterns used in major developed countries, the Brazilian experience can be considered a model. Contrary to what the article claims, ethanol has been a central part of the solution. Antonio de Aguiar Patriota Ambassador of Brazil to the U.S. WASHINGTON

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