Ecological indicators of the ecosystem services provided by the forests of the State of São Paulo

• Grant number: 10/00045-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: January 07, 2011
• End date: January 06, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Applied Social Sciences - Economics - Agrarian and Natural Resource Economics
• Principal Investigator: Norton Ribeiro de Freitas Junior
• Grantee: Norton Ribeiro de Freitas Junior
• Host Investigator: Joshua C. Farley
• Host Institution: Instituto de Botânica. Secretaria de Meio Ambiente, Infraestrutura e Logística (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of Vermont (UVM), United States

Abstract

The scope of the ecosystem services is extremely broad, ranging from gas, climate, disturbance and water regulation to water supply, waste absorption capacity, erosion control and sediment retention, soil formation, nutrient cycling, pollination, biological control, habitat, genetic resources, recreation and cultural (Costanza et al., 1997; Daly &Farley, 2004). A study of the sustainability indicators of the forests is important for the economy of the State of São Paulo as well as for the Brazilian economy. This is why the project entitled: "Ecological Indicators for the Ecosystem Services provided by the Forests of the State of São Paulo", assess the implications of these services. Among the questions we will be trying to answer with the research are allegations such as land use changes will help the restoration of the ecosystem services offered by the Atlantic Forest and Cerrado Biomes that could be generating monetary resources for the State today. These questions will be addressed using a, Multi-scale Integrated Model of the Earth Systems Ecological Services (MIMES), as part of the method applied for identifying the dynamics and the value of the ecosystem services. (AU)