Study of human occupation impacts in the Batedor river basin in the Mantiqueira Mountain in the municipal district of Cruzeiro, SP, Brazil

Abstract

The study of hydrographic basins as territorial units integrating the management of hydric resources is essential to guarantee sustainable use of natural resources in these basins. The establishment of the Paraíba do Sul hydrographic basins committee, in 1994, determined the need for management planning and action integration in the Paraíba do Sul basin which incorporates a variety of industries and intense land use. The Batedor river, in the municipality of Cruzeiro, SP, flows into the Passa Vinte which is an affluent of Paraíba do Sul river. Its mouth is located at 22°31’0.63”S and 45°01’2.07”W. Its farthest water contributing source lies about 8.5 km, near the Itaguaré peak 2,308 m high, in the Mantiqueira Mountain on the border of São Paulo and Minas Gerais States. To characterize land use in the Batedor hydrographic basin, Landsat imagery and topographic charts were analyzed based on remote sensing and geoprocessing techniques. This paper describes the study of impacts related to land and water resources use in the Batedor river basin and the generation of educational environmental material. Results have shown that this basin has good water supply, has no flooding risk and has several springs running down the Mantiqueira Moutain slopes that form young creeks with few meanders. Irregular human occupation for housing and subsistence agriculture, mainly banana plantations can be seen in deep slopes and riparian areas, as well as degraded pastures that indicate inappropriate land use and no conformance to pertinent legislation. The decrease in forest vegetation cover can cause severe erosion with significant soil loss and sediment deposition in the river, thus reducing water quality and quantity during the dry season. This basin is currently responsible for 70% of the Cruzeiro, SP water supply.