Unidades de conservação como política de proteção à biodiversidade : uma caracterização perceptiva de grupos sócioculturais do entorno da APA do Catolé e Fernão Velho, estado de Alagoas

Abstract

Natural protected areas as biodiversity protection policies: perceptive characterization of sociocultural groups from the surrounding of the EPA of Catolé and Fernão Velho, State of Alagoas, Brazil - Nowadays, the world is passing through out a great increasing of devastation in natural environments, which have been drastically changed by different cultures. The discussion focusing the few protected areas which retain the biodiversity leads to reflections about what have been done in order to preserve the natural resources still remaining in the planet. In this direction, most of the nations that are preoccupied on the level of environmental degradation are creating legal procedures in order to protect their natural ecosystems. The appropriation and the neglect behavior of the human being related to the indiscriminate use of the natural resources of the planet have been made on an egoistic form. There is no consideration on the property pertaining to all generations. So, alternatives arise focusing to protect the natural wealth of human kind. Amongst them, it must be emphasized the creation of natural protected areas (called in Brazil Unidades de Conservação UCs), included in two different categories: 1. integral protection and 2. sustainable use. One of them is the Área de Proteção Ambiental APA (Environmental Protected Areas - EPA), which is classified in the category of sustainable use. The EPA of Catolé and Fernão Velho was created on the State of Alagoas, in Brazil, by the Law number 5,347, in May 27, 1992. As well as the majority of the created UCs, this EPA is in risky situation due to many negative anthropic actions even on its interior as well as on its surroundings. Considering this situation was developed this study in order to do an environmental evaluation of several activities related to the soil use and occupation in the surrounding of the Catolé forest, mainly the risks to the biodiversity. The dissertation is structured on three chapters: the Chapter 1 include the theoretical background based on two points: (1) environmental conservation as policies to protect biodiversity and (2) the participative management as tool for the sustainable development; the Chapter 2 is about the importance to develop researches on UCs; in the Chapter 3 are presented and discussed the field research results, including types of environmental negative impacts and perceptive characterization by different socioeconomic groups that act in the EPA and on its near surroundings). Previously, in February 2005, interviews were carried out in order to evaluate the present conditions of the UC management in the State of Alagoas. ... In order to detect if the management attended the Laws and to identify the difficulties for this activities, the questions were applied to the managers of the federal and state UC, respectively, Instituto Brasileiro do Meio Ambiente e dos Recursos Naturais Renováveis (IBAMA) and the Instituto do Meio Ambiente (IMA) in order to record the environmental changes: (1) to detect if the management attended the Laws and (2) to identify the difficulties for their management. From July 2005 to July 2006, ten visits were done in order to record the environmental changes. Five social-cultural groups took part of this study: (1) researchers, (2) teachers and (3) students of the local school (Colégio Estadual Onélia Campelo), and (4) inhabitants of the EPA surrounding area. Questionnaires with different contents were applied. For teachers, the main topics were: a) the level of knowledge about the forest near the school; b) inclusion or forest features as didactic contents; c) description of the landscape, fauna and flora. For students, were proposed some activities: a) drawings about the forest, its animals and plants; b) personal opinions about the importance of preserving the forest. The questions for the inhabitants focused: a) the animals sawn in the forest; b) the type of feelings about them; c) their position about preserving the forest. The 24 UC legally constituted in the State of Alagoas do not have a management plan. The special retraction of the studied forest remains in the last decade (reduced to 36%) reflects the accelerated deforestation due to irregular human occupation in the forest surrounding area as well as inside the EPA. The perceptive characterization of the forest by the different socio-cultural groups shows two different points of view: (1) A preservationist one, from the researchers, which consider the EPA an ecologic sanctuary, and, though, needs to be protect; and other (2) the utilitarist one, from teachers, students and inhabitants. The draws reflects an urbanizated forest used as pomar, way to school and to go home, playing area and place for using drugs. This study shows that the EPA of Catolé and Fernão Velho is in an advanced degradation stage, as a result of pottencially comprometedoras activities that lead to risks to the biodiversity an, as a consequence, to the environmental quality of the EPA even in its interior as well as on forest surrounding area. These activities have as probable causes, lacking of a management plan, policies and, mainly, information and conscientization on natural protect areas importance for the society.