EFFECTIVENESS OF BUFFER ZONES IN PROTECTED AREAS IN THE AMAZON

• Grant number: 24/07595-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: May 01, 2025
• End date: December 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Geography
• Principal Investigator: Lindon Fonseca Matias
• Grantee: Juciana da Conceição Birino de Souza
• Host Institution: Instituto de Geociências (IG). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In recent decades, the Maranhão Amazon has been experiencing significant changes in land cover, driven by the growth of pressure zones associated with socioeconomic development projects. This dynamic has affected forest remnants and the survival of local communities, highlighting the need to strengthen the effectiveness of protected areas. Given this scenario, this doctoral research aims to conduct an assessment of Buffer Zones (BZs) of Conservation Units (CUs) in this biome. The study will focus on analyzing national and regionais legais frameworks regulating BZs, investigating the variation in land use and cover around CUs over the past 24 years, projecting scenarios of land use pressure for the years 2030 and 2035, and developing a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based model to assess the effectiveness of BZs. The methods adopted will include: i) systematic literature review, using fiches, abstracts, and keyword searches in legal and scientific repositories, both physical and digital; ii) perimeter buffer simulations for BZs in the Maranhão Amazon; iii) analysis of land use and cover maps from 1974, 1984, 1994, 2004, 2014, and 2024; iv) development of future pressure zone scenarios based on socioeconomic diagnostics collected from municipal scientific and technical reports; v) conducting interviews; vi) fieldwork. It is expected that this research will provide updated data and information to support the improvement of theoretical, normative, and territorial management instruments of CUs in the Amazon biome in Maranhão.