Image credit: CCA Archive
SERRA DO SALITRE MOBILIZES TO MAINTAIN THE MUNICIPALITY’S WATER WITH THE METHODOLOGY OF THE CERRADO DAS ÁGUAS CONSORTIUM
Through the PIPC, a workshop brought together a diverse audience for debate and proposals on caring for water resources.
By Cerrado das Águas Consortium
On November 11, the Cerrado das Águas Consortium began to expand its methodology to the municipality of Serra do Salitre. On that day, the first PIPC Workshop (Programa de Investimento no Produtor Consciente) was held in the municipality, whose main source of income is agriculture, bringing together various segments for a debate and also proposals for actions to conserve water resources.
During the morning, rural producers, local public power and that of neighbouring municipalities, entities linked to water supply, companies and banking institutions, participated in two important moments for the discussion on water.
“With adverse events and climate change, this is the time to have concrete attitudes to solve the problem. The CCA started in Patrocínio and has now arrived in Serra do Salitre, with other municipalities already proposing to join, thus creating a large green corridor here in the Triângulo Mineiro and Alto Paranaíba, bringing about a general change for the better in our ecosystem, with improved quality of life for the population, more efficient production processes, soil conservation and management of water resources. It has brought about a general change in the region as a whole”, says Augusto Guimarães, Serra do Salitre’s Environment Secretary.
ZAP – Productive Environmental Zoning
The ZAP – Productive Environmental Zoning, a consolidated instrument in Minas Gerais that contributes to territorial planning aimed at the sustainable use of natural resources, was developed in partnership with SEBRAE/INAES and presented to the participants by Fabiana Vilela, a technical consultant from SEBRAE. The ZAP study helps in the understanding of the dynamics of these basins as well as in the identification of areas with greater potential for restoration, thus ensuring the provision of important ecosystem services
“With the first PIPC workshop in Serra do Salitre the start was given for the work of building sustainable productive landscapes within the Ribeirão Grande basin. In this first workshop we got to know the conservation status of the basin better and heard a little about the strategies that the CCA has for producers to improve the productivity of their properties. Fabiane Sebaio, executive secretary of the Cerrado das Águas Consortium, explained.
Facilitating dynamics
The second moment promoted interaction among the participants, sharing experiences, visions of improvements and the possibility of actions to conserve water resources. The participants understood the work methodology of the Cerrado das Águas Consortium and supported its initiatives, in view of the results already presented in the pilot project in the Feio stream basin, in Patrocínio, a neighboring municipality.
The workshop also presented the experiment on Soil Conservation: infiltration and surface runoff demonstrated by the CCA team. In a didactic way, it was demonstrated the importance of land use planning allowing water to infiltrate into the soil, supplying the water table, instead of erosive processes and, consecutively, the loss of the arable land layer. The experiment reflects the importance of implementing smart agriculture practices to control soil and water losses in arable areas, maximizing productivity, making the Cerrado das Águas Consortium’s work more tangible and drawing the attention of the producers present at the event.
“The event was a very important kick-off for the preservation of springs and soil in general. It’s a very important process because it will be done together with the producer, the private sector, and the municipality, which is willing to offer machinery and equipment to do whatever is necessary to plant and re-establish the conditions of the springs. The point that deserves highlighting is the chain that the CCA proposes, uniting the producer and the companies for the same objective. This partnership will show us how we can improve what we already do to take care of the springs and the soil”, says rural producer Osmar Pedron.
PIP and individual workshops
The CCA’s great differential is its ability to establish a partnership that aggregates the sectors involved, understanding the needs of rural producers and helping them think and carry out actions according to their possibilities.
The CCA offers specialized services for the environmental development of the properties in the basin on three fronts: restoration, climate-smart agricultural practices, and efficient management of water resources. Thus, by joining this Program, the producer receives the PIP – Individual Property Plan, prepared by CCA’s technical team and specialists for each producer to implement the specific strategies of his farm aligned with the major objective of the platform which is climate resilience of production.
Between November 12 and 26, the CCA team attended the producers to present the PIP – Individual Property Plan, 13 producers adhered to the methodology and the agreed strategies and actions will promote the construction of a sustainable productive landscape for the Ribeirão Grande basin.
“The ribeirão Grande basin has a total APP area of 1,410 hectares, of which 568 hectares need restoration strategies, according to SEBRAE’s diagnosis. In the priority area for conservation defined by the SEBRAE studies, which is the upper part of the ribeirão Grande and the sub-basin of the ribeirão Cachoeira, 158 properties were surveyed. Of this total, 44 properties are already registered and 20 had their diagnoses completed with the PIP (Individual Property Plan), adding a total of 50 hectares indicated to producers for restoration in this cycle (December 2021 and March 2022), and the negotiation workshop we got the acceptance of 13 producers to restore 30.09 hectares in 18 properties. Next year (2022) we will expand the registration and diagnosis and this potential area will expand”, says Fabiane Sebaio.
About the Cerrado das Águas Consortium
Created in 2015, in Patrocínio – MG, the Cerrado das Águas Consortium aims to raise awareness among producers in the region about the importance of their environmental assets through diagnosis and investment in them, ensuring their long-term preservation.
The initiative has the following companies as associate members: Nescafé, Expocaccer, Nespresso, Lavazza, Cooxupé, CofCo, Volcafé, Stockler, in addition to supporting institutions such as the Cerrado Coffee Growers Federation, CerVivo, Imaflora, and IEB – International Education Institute of Brazil.
In 2019, the pilot project received US$400,000 from the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund (CEPF) to implement the program that will initially promote the investment and protection of the natural ecosystems found in more than 100 properties along the Feio watershed. The amount is the largest subsidy ever awarded by CEPF, which has demanding donors such as the French Development Agency (AFD), European Union, Global Environment Facility (GEF), Government of Japan, and World Bank
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