Soil Degradation in Southeast Brazil: A Challenge for Restoration and Rehabilitation

Abstract

The Southeast region of Brazil represents the main economic center of the country. Its use and occupation date back to the beginning of colonization by European countries in the sixteenth century. This long period of economic activities led to the current scenario of land degradation. Since the time of the first settlements, native forests have been removed mainly by the cultivation of coffee in the Paraiba do Sul River Valley and West of Sao Paulo state and also by mining in Minas Gerais. The deforestation exposed fragile soils, developed on sandstones (Sao Paulo and Triangulo Mineiro), and low fertility soils, developed on igneous and metamorphic rocks (Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo), resulting in the increase of erosion processes. In some areas there are many deep gullies, associated with agriculture and the expansion of cities. In other areas, sheet erosion, gullies, and ravines occur frequently due to coffee cultivation and the introduction of livestock. The northwest part of Rio de Janeiro state is a region which deserves to be highlighted due to the serious threat of desertification caused by lower annual rainfall averages and the intense compaction of soils under excessive grazing. Sustainable and strategically sound restoration and rehabilitation activities need to be implemented to stop the ongoing process of land degradation.