Water ecosystem services in fragmented forest landscapes: a way for the Atlantic Forest conservation

Author(s)

Vivian Cristina dos Santos Hackbart

• Document type: Doctoral Thesis
• Press: São Paulo.
• Institution: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Instituto de Biociências (IBIOC/SB)
• Defense date: 2016-12-12

Examining board members

Rozely Ferreira dos Santos; Adriana Maria Zanforlin Martini; Jean Paul Walter Metzger; Evandro Mateus Moretto; Paulo Antonio de Almeida Sinisgalli

• Advisor: Rozely Ferreira dos Santos

Abstract

The possibility of elaborate planning in forest areas from notion of ecosystem services, especially water services, expanded in a short time, mainly because this strategy shows how the loss of this natural system by human activities can cause losses irreparable to their own well-being. Working environmental planning under this approach requires the adoption of a strong theoretical basis for water services; a model for comparing landscapes under different conditions of use and conservation of forest; and insight about the type of valuation used in the identification of the limits of forest loss in order not to compromise the necessary supply of these services. This study argued that in the Atlantic Forest is possible to recognize the direct dependency between amounts of forest, human uses and water services in watersheds and, through it, assess the provision of these services and compare landscapes. In order to defend this argument were selected 27 territorial units of the Vale do Paraíba region (Sao Paulo, Brazil) from the application of a spatial model based on the extraction of river basins originating hexagons intersection with percentages of forest, anthropic field and forestry. In each unit were obtained data from 13 physical-chemical-biological parameters in two seasons, which were ranked by Random Forest in order to support its relations with the amount of forest as well as the index formulation for seven water services. The parameters more suitable for monitoring water in front of services to forest gains, and with large hierarchical influence the formulation of the indices, were turbidity, conductivity and total dissolved solids. The indices obtained allowed to point out that to keep 50% of the total potential of the seven water services in landscapes with anthropic fields (pasture) are required more than 40% forest cover, but the best servi4e potential gains occurred from 60%. When the territorial unit is a combination of forest and forestry there is more supply of water services with less forest, but the management of timber and the presence of degraded areas completely changed this favorable scenario (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 13/08746-1 - Spatial heterogeneity and ecosystem service: strategic measures for planning in the Atlantic forest
• Grantee: Vivian Cristina dos Santos Hackbart
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate