Análise Multitemporal das Mudanças na Cobertura da Terra de uma Bacia Hidrográfica na Costa Atlântica (Multitemporal Analysis of Land Use and Cover Changes of a River Basin in the Atlantic Coast of Brazil)

Abstract

Based on the historical context of exploitation of the natural resources of the Caeté River Basin, the objective of this work was to identify and assess land use and cover changes in this region. This basin is in the Atlantic Coast of Brazil, in the northeastern state of Pará. It is one of the oldest colonized regions in the Amazon and is strongly affected by the intensive investments of the agricultural sector. This work was based on cartographic materials of the TerraClass project of the Brazilian National Institute of Space Research (INPE) in partnership with the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA). These cartographic materials consisted of 222/61 and 223/61 orbital images from 2004, 2010, and 2014. The land use and cover of the Caeté River Basin is diverse, mainly represented by the classes: Pasture, Forest, and Occupational Mosaic. The area of the Pasture class had an increase in the basin from approximate 39% in 2004 to 41% in 2014. The Forest class covered 33% of the area in 2004 and 38% in 2014; this increment may be associated with public forest conservation policies. The Occupational Mosaic class remained at 1% from 2004 to 2014. The major challenge for this work was the acquisition of relevant images since the study region presents great cloud interference. Multitemporal analyses of land use and cover changes at river basin level are important to identify and mitigate possible problems related to the management of water resources.