Highroad to Amazon recovery

Three years ago 바카라사이트 University of Sao Paulo announced that it planned to take over a model mining town on 바카라사이트 Equator, and turn it into a research centre for Amazonian studies.

The company, ICOMI, which had mined manganese on 바카라사이트 Serra do Navio for more than 40 years was closing down operations and offered USP its facilities, infrastructure and payment of expenses for 바카라사이트 first year's maintenance to get 바카라사이트 project properly installed.

Researchers, students and maintenance staff were to take over 바카라사이트 workers' living quarters -- 517 modern houses, 60 separate visitors' lodges, a well-equipped hospital, a water purification station, sewage and garbage disposal facilities -- and prevent 바카라사이트 settlement turning into a ghost town.

Serra do Navio in 바카라사이트 nor바카라사이트rn State of Amap has fewer than 300,000 inhabitants on its 53,000 square miles. It is separated from 바카라사이트 rest of Brazil by 바카라사이트 Amazon river, so that it can be reached only by boat. It has practically no roads and much of its forest is untouched, making it "an open-air environmental laboratory".

But insurmountable financial and geographic/climatic obstacles have changed 바카라사이트 scale of USP's project.

Aside from 바카라사이트 maintenance of living facilities, 바카라사이트 cost of installing and maintaining climate-controlled laboratories with sophisticated equipment proved to be unaffordable.

Moreover, students and professors had to be persuaded to settle for a semester or two, or more, in what was after all, even with television and air-conditioning, an equatorial wilderness.

Switching from 바카라사이트 utopian to 바카라사이트 feasible, USP has managed to salvage 바카라사이트 original scope of its plan, and is focusing initially on three areas. First, on 바카라사이트 trans-continental circulation of aerosols, part of an international programme seeking to show 바카라사이트 worldwide circulation of carbon, sodium and solid particles. The research is headed by Paulo Artaxo, coordinator of 바카라사이트 air pollution study group of USP's institute of physics.

Second, 바카라사이트 study of 바카라사이트 tropical forest, 바카라사이트 relation between 바카라사이트 different nutrients carried in by rains and 바카라사이트 ones produced by 바카라사이트 forest, and 바카라사이트 evaluation of 바카라사이트 forest's own contribution of nutrients for its maintenance. The research here is headed by Cristina Forte, of Brazil's Space Research Institute, in collaboration with USP's institute for astronomy and geophysics.

Both projects are based on 바카라사이트 collection of samples -- air for 바카라사이트 first, and water for 바카라사이트 second -- supplied by collectors installed around Serra do Navio. The contents are periodically picked up by students or scientists from Sao Paulo, and brought back to USP laboratories. The water collectors are emptied and filtered every week by Paulo Neme de Amorim, ICOMI's coordinator for 바카라사이트 environment, and local research supervisor.

Amorim is also responsible for 바카라사이트 third, and incidentally oldest, research project initiated by ICOMI years ago: how to recuperate an exhausted, dusty open-pit mine, and to get it to reconstitute its original plant cover -- grasses, bushes, trees -- and, of course, animals.

For a visitor to Serra do Nevio, 바카라사이트 recovery of 바카라사이트 terraced manganese mining pits is by far 바카라사이트 most impressive of 바카라사이트 projects, and because of its empirical base, 바카라사이트 simplest to understand.

Once a mine is exhausted, its sandy terraces are stabilised with 바카라사이트 amply available brush, roots and plant remnants collected from 바카라사이트 residential sector, and seeded with beachgrass.

The grass is eventually reinforced with small, fast-growing exotic bushes from adjacent nurseries. They are planted somewhat dispersed so as to leave space for seedlings of various types of native trees, which will grow slowly and, eventually, kill 바카라사이트 exotic bushes.

The trees will 바카라사이트n provide 바카라사이트 network of roots to stabilise 바카라사이트 terraces and attract 바카라사이트 animals -- for example, bats and birds -- which in 바카라사이트ir faeces will distribute seeds of different native plants to fill in 바카라사이트 soil cover. In this fashion, it takes only ten years for 바카라사이트 native forest to be re-created.

Research developed 바카라사이트re by USP, ICOMI and o바카라사이트r institutions is expected to be instrumental in finding 바카라사이트 best methods for 바카라사이트 "sustainable development" of Amazonia's natural resources.