SPATIO-TEMPORAL ANALYSIS OF ENVIRONMENTAL VULNERABILITY TO LINEAR EROSION PROCESSES

• Grant number: 25/11541-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: October 01, 2025
• End date: September 30, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Geosciences - Geophysics
• Principal Investigator: Melina Fushimi
• Grantee: Karolina Cardozo Dias
• Host Institution: Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas (IGCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Accelerated erosion is one of the main processes of soil degradation in Brazil and worldwide, compromising soil fertility and, consequently, food production. According to the FAO (2022), 95% of global food production depends on soils, but it is estimated that erosion could reduce this production by up to 10% and remove 75 billion tons of soil by 2050. Given this scenario, this project aims to analyze, on a spatial-temporal scale, environmental vulnerability to linear erosion. The research will be developed in the Ribeirão Cachoeirinha (SP) hydrographic basin, located in the Peripheral Depression of São Paulo - a region marked by high susceptibility to erosion, with emphasis on the removal of native vegetation, which is replaced by pastures and monocultures. Thematic maps will be produced in a Geographic Information System (GIS) environment, applying the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) technique for the years 1985 and 2025, in addition to fieldwork, laboratory analyses, and the preparation of an integrated summary of vulnerability levels. Based on the data obtained and research carried out in other sectors of Brazil, such as the Golfão Maranhense, Planalto Sul-Mato-Grossense, Planalto Ocidental Paulista, and Depressão Periférica Paulista, the aim is to propose models and methodologies that consider regional environmental dynamics. Finally, the results will contribute to the extension project "IntegraSolos: dialogues and practices between University and School," focused on basic education, promoting pedagogical activities on the formation, degradation, and management of tropical soils. (AU)