The project aimed to compensate for the installation of gas pipelines by Petrobras system and was extremely important for the forest, which has maintained a rich flora and fauna biodiversity that had to be preserved.
Challenges
Forestation needed to be implemented in private areas as well as public ones as there was not enough public space available. So we had to get landowners to allow the use of their land. And it was crucial that landowners accepted future-use restrictions in selected areas.
We had to ensure that the detailed design was compliant with specific characteristics of each area, considering adaptations to all soil, climactic and topographic conditions.
Changing tree species in the Atlantic Forest was particularly complex as it was limited to the rainy seasons, making access to plants extremely difficult.
Solution
We gained the trust of landowners, for example, by giving advice on improving production without disregarding farmers' ideas and experience.
A total of 21 areas in Rio de Janeiro State were selected and detailed design was developed considering the characteristics of each area as well as the demands of each property owner.
Each activity was planned considering weather, materials and equipment conditions. This helped transform degraded pasture areas into residual forests during the initial regeneration stage, in four years.
Value and benefits
This project played an invaluable role by raising community awareness of the importance of maintaining green areas and increasing climate resilience. Additional benefits included carbon capture and storage, water production, fauna and flora preservation as well as landscaping.