Transcript Dr. Nick Comerford - Soil and Water Science

The Atlantic Forest of the Cacau
Coast in Brazil
Diverse plants, climate and soils:
Opportunities for graduate
student research
Original Atlantic
Forest Extent
x
x
Elevation
Relief
Degree Slope
0,1 =0-5
2 =5-15
3 =15-25
4,5 =25-40
6,7 =40-55
400 to
600 mm
2400 to
2600 mm
ustic
udic
Climate is tropical and
over a short distance
(<150 km) ranges from
wet to dry
Tropical Rain Forest
Dry Climate
Tropical High Altitude Climate
Bioregions/Forest Types
N. Semi-deciduous
Caatinga
N. Lowland
Crystalline rock
C. Lowland
C. Semi-deciduous
C. Tableland
S. Semi-deciduos
S. Tableland
Sediments of the
Coastal Tablelands
Coastal/Wetland
Haplorthox
Hapustox
Tropudalfs
Troposaprists
Tropudults
Haplustalf
Eutropept
Haplorthox
Hf
Tropudults
Argiustolls
Tropudalfs
Umbriorthox
Tropaquods
Species richness
Atlantic
Forest
Plant Biodiversity
is high and
variable…one of
the world’s 25
biodiversity
hotspots
63-70
55-62
47-54
39-46
30-38
Jardim & Landau, 2003
Plant species richness potential
Over 400 tree
species per hectare
have been recorded
While the Atlantic Forest’s
uniqueness is biodiversity,
its problems are deforestation and
fragmentation
100 million hectares reduced by 92%
Forest exist now as fragments
Semi-deciduous
cacau
Deciduous
pasture
Dense rainforest
regeneration
Rain
forest
Ilheus-Itabuna Area
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Southern Bahia
50
0
10
00
20
00
40
00
60
00
80
00
10
00
0
Exists as
fragments
Frequency (%)
Atlantic Forest
Fragment size (ha)
Based on: Cordeiro 2003
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Biodiversity
depends on
climate, soil and
fragment size
Species richness of Psitacideos
Atlantic Forest
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
100
1000
10000
100000
Size of fragment (ha)
Cordeiro 2003
The potential for
environmental problems
is shown by the land
use
Foto: E.C. Landau, Fev/2000
Area (km2)
50000
40000
30000
Landau, 2003
88,350 sq km
20000
10000
Ol
dF
or
Re
ge n
Mo
no
Fo
r
Ca
br
uc
a
Ma
ng
rov
e
Re
sti
ng
a
Ca
ati
ng
Pa
a
stu
re/
Ag
Ba
re
So
il
Ur
ba
n
0
Land Use
Foto: E.C. Landau, Jan/2000
Is there interest in the
region for collaboration with
UF?
Paraphrased from the Director of Research
for CEPLAC (a UF graduate) and the Dean
of Research of UESC
“Why do students from Florida go to the
Amazon when the most threatened
ecosystems in Brazil and S. America are
here?”
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Soil biodiversity
Soil chemical diversity
Agroforestry
Soil environmental services
Soil Environmental Services:
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Soil carbon accumulation/sequestration
Water quality and quantity
Soil nutrient bioavailability
Control of soil erosion through soil
structure development and soil
stabilization
Soil Environmental Services: Research on Land
Use Change and Environmental Quality
Environmental Services:
(1) Are degraded due to deforestation and poor
management
(2) Will be used by developed countries to offset
activities (i.e. trading of carbon credits)
(3) The lack of infrastructure to enforce
environmental regulation places a heavy
reliance on services for reclaiming or
protecting environmental quality.
and……
Services may provide an income to
landowners:
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Carbon Market
Brazilian Environmental Commodity
Exchange
Questions?