flora sureveys are fundamental for the implementation of management plans and measures for the conservation of the biome. The Amadeu Botelho Ecological Reserve (ERAB) is a Private Reserve of Natural Heritage (PRNH) that contains a preserved fragment of Atlantic Forest whose mammal fauna has yet to be thoroughly studied. Hence, the present study surveyed the mammalian fauna of the ERAB and evaluated the influence of the farm's plantations and its proximity to the urban center on these mammals. Materials and Methods Study site The study area is the Ecological Reserve Amadeu Botelho (ERAB), one Private Reserve of Natural Heritage (PRNH) created through the Ordinance No. 19 ICMBio (Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade) in 2000. It is owned by the Santo Antonio Ipês farm located in the municipality of Jaú (22°18′ S, 48°31′ W), in the central-western region of the state of São Paulo, in southeastern Brazil. The farm was acquired by Arruda Botelho family in the late 19th century (Conselho Nacional da Reserva da Biosfera da Mata Atlântica 2008). The farm grows various crops such as sugarcane, corn, sunflowers, oranges, as well as species of the genus Cordia, medicinal passion fruit, peaches and coffee. These plantations surround the entire forest fragment, giving it a clear cut and elongated appearance (Figure 1). Several dirt roads cut through these plantations, which are used to transport harvested crops. In addition, two roads cut
We conducted a diagnosis of the environmental management system of the Brazilian auto parts industry, using the LIFE certification methodology (lasting initiative for earth) as a diagnostic tool. This certification recognizes enterprises that develop conservation actions for biodiversity for the purpose of minimizing and/or mitigating their own negative impact on the environment. Through this method, it was possible to quantify and qualify the environmental impact and investigate the existence of conservation actions, as well as evaluate them quantitatively and qualitatively. Therefore, we used this methodology to demonstrate its potential as an economic instrument of environmental management through its application within an EMS certified to the ISO 14001 series. It was shown that there are many benefits of using sustainable environmental resources (possibility to return to ISE-Corporate Sustainability Index-Bovespa) and for the final disposal of waste from production. The main results indicated that the LIFE methodology allows companies to incorporate actions to biodiversity conservation transversally into their EMSs, which can increase the efficiency of enterprise management. We believe that the use of this management model by other companies will enable the intensification of conservation actions in protected areas in their regions.
Anthropization of natural areas accelerated biodiversity loss and climate changes. Thus, it is imperative that all economic sectors adjust to sustainability precepts, collaborating to the maintenance of ecosystems. Therefore, we questioned: Are sustainable companies developing sufficient actions to preserve and/or conserve biomes where they are installed? To answer, we estimated the biodiversity impacts on the Brazilian biomes developed by 11 companies which's participated, uninterruptedly, in all ISE portfolios between 2005 and 2014. We used the LIFE certification methodology (Lasting Initiative for Earth) to qualify and quantify the minimum externalities, and mitigations of each corporation. Ten corporations generated 96% of total externalities, while mitigated only 10%. One financial institution did not develop mitigations, and one company of chemical/petrochemical sector described biodiversity in Brazil as irrelevant and insignificant. Only company of paper/cellulose mitigated their externalities. This company developed 77% of total scores calculated, by creating 41,600 ha of Protected Areas. Thus, the forest sector mitigated 30% of total externalities calculated for the 11 companies. That is, the organizations analyzed here demonstrated that they do not yet internalize the importance of promoting biodiversity conservation actions as a way to minimize their impacts. The LIFE certification methodology can be considered an additional tool for environmental management, indicating areas in which a company has the potential to improve management through the calculus of partial results of externalities. Also, the methodology allows for the strengthening of transparency of sustainability of companies on the Brazilian Stock Exchange (B3) and society as a whole, once the mitigation of environmental impacts through biodiversity conservation actions contributes to promoting the resilience and resistance of ecosystems, allowing the maintenance of ecosystem services, generating social welfare, economic consciousness and environmental equilibrium.
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