Análise espaço-temporal da vegetação de mangue na Paraíba: sensoriamento remoto e geoprocessamento como ferramentas de coleta e análises.

Abstract

The mangrove ecosystem is characterized as nursery species base of the food chain in coastal areas and indicator of environmental change. The flora and fauna are adapted the characteristics of estuarine and brackish environments. Its importance goes beyond natural wealth, because the preservation of these areas protects the fishing and collecting shellfish,promoting both the livelihoods of local populations as the development of the food sector .Given her importance is fundamental the implementation of conservation actions and environmental monitoring Thus the Remote Sensing stands out as a the science able to perform appropriate analysis. This research aimed to identify and map the vegetation present in the mangrove estuaries of Paraíba in about four different decades with the use of images from the Landsat series satellites. To this end, the following methodological procedures were performed: a) Digital Processing of Satellite Images; b) organization and Quantification of Information; c) Fieldwork and d) Validation of Mapping. We identified 18 estuaries in the State; Reduction between 1985 to 2011 by 13.5% of the mangrove, the largest reduction in vegetation occurred for the period 19942001; assessed that there is the higher suppression of vegetation that houses the South Coast 18% of the mangroves in the State; Seventeen estuarine areas showed loss of mangrove vegetation, with the greatest reduction in Paraíba identified with 670 hectares. Only the estuary Gramame had increased, this 9%; Major causes of removal of vegetation identified in situ were: urban growth, solid waste disposal and wastewater, besides the degradation from the practice of leisure activities.