Dinâmica de regeneração por pousio de encosta degradada no semiárido

Abstract

The Caatinga biome covers an area of 850,000 km² in the Brazilian Northeast, where degradation processes already affect 50% of its territory. In this context, the restoration of degraded areas is a fundamental task. Among the various recovery techniques, fallow stands out as a viable alternative. The Aiuaba Ecological Station (ESEC), in Ceará, was created in 1978 and, since then, has remained without degradation-generating use. However, scars caused by unsustainable uses prior to the 1978 intervention are still observed in the ESEC. The objective of this study is, therefore, to evaluate the recovery performance of the preserved Caatinga in fallow. The study evaluated a degraded hillside area in fallow in the Aiuaba ESEC. The assessment of the recovery dynamics was carried out using the Verhulst-Pearl equation parameter. The data are based on remote sensing, using Google Earth Pro, Earth Explorer and UAV images, which are from 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990, 2001, 2004, 2018, and 2023. It was possible to observe the almost total recovery of the area, with an estimated complete recovery 50 years after the first observation. The recovery parameter (λ) calibrated for the preserved Caatinga has a value of 0.220 year⁻¹. This parameter indicates that recovery through fallow in the Caatinga presents a swifter dynamic than the recovery achieved in the degraded areas of Saldaña, Spain. Although the Spanish region is classified as sub-humid, the Brazilian biome demonstrates a superior capacity for response and regeneration.