The aim of this project was to strengthen the SUSTRURAL array - a set of Embrapa projects related to environmental rehabilitation and compliance in the rural landscape of the Atlantic Rainforest in Southern and Southeastern Brazil - based on deeper integration and training of component members.
SUSTRURAL was created to study solutions to the problems experienced by the rural landscape of the Atlantic Rainforest, which is characterized by the prevalence of fragmented forest ecosystems, particularly in the Brazilian South and Southeast, generating a scenario in which there is often low agricultural productivity, loss of biodiversity and low supply of environmental services. Embrapa Soils, Embrapa Forestry, Embrapa Southeastern Livestock, Embrapa Environment, Embrapa Dairy Cattle, and Embrapa Agrobiology are part of the array.
The rehabilitation of degraded areas and environmental compliance in rural properties are considered key for the effective implementation of the new Brazilian Forest Code. In that sense, properties' registration at the Rural Environmental Registry (Cadastro Ambiental Rural - CAR) has generated a requirement that research institutions offer technological solutions for the efficient recovery of permanent preservation areas (Área de Preservação Permanente - APPs), legal reserves (Reserva Legal - RLs) and for production systems that involve trees, such as the silvopasture systems and agroforestry systems.