The environmental quality assessment of APA Tambaba rivers through the Rapid Assessment Protocol

Abstract

Water bodies are ecosystems impacted generally by human activities, especially urban densification and agricultural activities. In this scenario, instruments are needed to allow the assessment and monitoring of environmental changes in these ecosystems. The objective of the present study was to evaluate, through the Rapid Assessment Protocol , the environmental conditions of the rivers inserted in the Tambaba Protected Area, including the Gurugi River, in order to identify the main environmental impacts. The Graú, Bucatu and Gurugi rivers had the greatest impacts, while the Mucatu river and the Caboclo Stream had better environmental conditions. Among the 13 points evaluated, 3 presented natural conditions, 8 altered and 2 impacted. The most frequent alterations occurred in the riparian forest (21.30%), in the characteristics of the sediments (18.33%) and in the physical characteristics of the water (18.52%). The points had worse environmental quality as they were located closer to urban areas. The Rapid Assessment Protocol proved to be a promising tool for preliminary identification of environmental impacts, however, more accurate assessments are needed to refine the diagnosis and make decisions.