Impact of land use in areas of buffer zone around Cicuta’s Forest, Volta Redonda, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Abstract

Anthropic actions have caused the degradation of Brazilian soils, especially due to reduced forest cover. The objective of this work was to evaluate soil attributes in areas under different forms of land use, located in the buffer zone of the Relevant Ecological Interest Area (ARIE) Cicuta Forest, middle Paraiba do Sul Valley, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Eight plots (10m × 12.5m) were installed in three different forms of land use (degraded pasture area; reforestation area with native species; and a fragment of a forest area) for evaluation of chemical and biological parameters. Although the fragment of a forest area presents a greater homogeneity regarding the nitrogen, polyphenols, humidity, and pH parameters, which shows greater environmental stability in this area, the microbiological parameters showed that there is a low activity, which might be indicative of a degraded environment, probably due to the small size of the forest fragment present in the buffer zone of the Relevant Ecological Interest Area (ARIE) Cicuta Forest.