Water quality indicators in a system of payments for environment services: case study Extrema, MG

Abstract

In order to understand more about the ecosystems, scholars and researchers have increasingly the studies about the relations concerning the interaction of man and the environment. These studies seek to base the current discussions about sustainability, and propose actions that could lead to the perpetuation of systems that structure our society. In this debate, the water enters as an essential element to life, because it is present in several sectors such as agricultural practices, industrial practices and supply of the population. That reflections, it is necessary to understanding of environmental processes related to water resources, enabling the conservation actions and use these resources as rationally as possible. In this context, all actions that aim to find mechanisms that can serve as a basis for practical conservation of water resources must be recognized, seeking to apply the appropriate measures that can improve the relationship between the physical, chemical and biological systems. This study aims to find indicators through the analysis of water quality parameters, which serve as reference for evaluation of areas with conservation practices, derived from a system of Payments for Environmental Services (PSA). The area to be studied was implemented by the city hall of the Municipality of Extrema, MG, in the watershed of Ribeirão das Posses, during the structuring of the management plan of the municipality. This study will be developed in partnership with the non-governmental organization (NGO) The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the city hall of Extrema, MG, trying to compare reforested areas with the different ages of plantation and agriculture areas of the basin, verifying the possible improvement in the issues involving the quality and quantity of water. (AU)