Amazonía: Análisis multitemporal de la deforestación en el municipio de Breu Branco, Brasil

Abstract

This paper analyzes the spatial pattern of changes in land cover in the municipality of Breu Branco, one of the seven municipalities directly affected by the Tucuruí reservoir, in the Brazilian Amazon. The analysis was performed using images Landsat satellite. It was carried out the mapping of the land cover classes and the quantitative characterization of the classes present in the municipality, during the periods of pre-inauguration, completion of phase I, beginning of phase II of construction and completion of the works of the Tucuruí hydroelectric power plant. The study was carried out in two phases, the first one corresponds to the application of the linear mixing model in segmented Landsat-TM images, executed for the mapping of the land cover classes. The second phase refers to the calculation of the landscape metrics, in order to characterize the classes quantitatively. The results revealed changes in the spatial pattern of forest cover in the municipality of Breu Branco, during the 26 years of analysis. The scenarios of 1999 and 2010 were the ones that presented the greatest expansion of deforested areas, referring to the scenarios of the phase II of construction of the Tucuruí hydroelectric power plant. The high level of fragmentation is associated with local highways and roads in the region, allowing connectivity between urban spots, facilitating access to new areas and converting forests into large areas for agribusiness.