Environmental quality in urban river basins: the use of environmental indicators applied to Guarulhos city, São Paulo State

• Grant number: 15/05069-4
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: July 01, 2015
• End date: June 30, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Geosciences
• Principal Investigator: Antonio Roberto Saad
• Grantee: Antonio Roberto Saad
• Host Institution: Universidade de Guarulhos (UNG). Campus Guarulhos-Centro. Guarulhos , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Antonio Manoel dos Santos Oliveira ; Fabrício Bau Dalmas ; Fernanda Amendola ; Fernanda Dall Ara Azevedo ; Regina de Oliveira Moraes Arruda ; Reinaldo Romero Vargas

Abstract

The rapid growth of cities in recent decades has promoted disordered occupation patterns that cause severe impacts on environmental quality and has caused serious environmental crises. The latest and impactful example of these environmental problems is related to the scarcity of water resources, a situation currently faced by São Paulo and other Brazilian states. In this context, the watershed is recognized as a territorial unit in which is possible to properly verify the interaction between the physical and biotic factors of the environment with forms of land use and relief appropriation. Thus, the watershed has been used as a prime unit of analysis in environmental studies made on territorial basis. The city of Guarulhos, a member of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo, is no exception in relation to those land-use issues. In this approach, the objective of this project is to develop a map of diagnosis of the current situation of environmental degradation of an important river basin in the city, called Invernada-Cachoeirinha. This map will be drawn up through a geo-environmental analysis characterized by integrated assessment of physical, biotic and anthropogenic factors. To achieve these goals, the degradation of the physical environment will be assessed by indicators relating to water and geological materials - soil and rock masses; the biotic environment for the fauna and the flora; and the anthropogenic environment by means of the characteristics of land use, health conditions and respect for environmental regulations. As a result, it is expected to obtain a qualitative assessment of the main indicators of environmental degradation individually considered and of the synergistic action of these parameters, by means of an environmental model able to provide specific and reliable subsides for the municipal management of river basins. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DHISNEY GONÇALVES DE OLIVEIRA; REINALDO ROMERO VARGAS; ANTONIO ROBERTO SAAD; REGINA DE OLIVEIRA MORAES ARRUDA; FABRÍCIO BAU DALMAS; FERNANDA DALL'ARA AZEVEDO. Uso da terra e seus impactos na qualidade da água da bacia hidrográfica Cachoeirinha Invernada, Guarulhos (SP). Rev. Ambient. Água, v. 13, n. 1, 2018-02-05. (15/05069-4)