Conhecendo as plantas do quintal: características e usos sociais da flora remanescente de áreas de várzea em comunidades rurais do nordeste paraense

Abstract

The forest remnants of the floodplain directly contribute to the family and local economy, helping the survival of rural communities, which maintain a relationship of integration and use, without the need for migratory agriculture. Rural communities are rich not only in natural resources, but also in knowledge, techniques and knowledge, which need to be studied responsibly. In this context, the university rural extension is an instrument/mechanism for approaching and learning between the university and the communities. The research has as study area remnants of lowland forest in rural communities of Segredinho and Braço Grande, in the municipality of Capanema, State of Pará. The objective was to analyze the ecological and socioeconomic importance of plant species from two forest remnants in the communities studied. For this purpose, the following methodologies were used: a) forest inventory in two sampling units, with 50x50 m plots, divided into 10 subplots of 10x25 m (0.25 ha), where diameter at breast height (DBH) was measured. and the total height (H) of all individuals with DBH≥10 cm; b) interviews with community members, with “snowball” sampling; c) floristic and structural analysis, species importance coefficient (CIE), application of allometric equation models, and d) elaboration of an informative booklet, as a product of university rural extension. The forest remnants studied have a high percentage of commercial species with economic potential, indicating ecological and economic sustainability. The structural analysis of the vegetation showed that taller individuals with greater basal area have greater influence on biomass and carbon stock. Biomass production, which is important to assess environmental quality, showed that both communities presented a catalytic characteristic of natural regeneration. The informative booklet addresses the multiple uses of plant species, as a material translation of orality and the need to lead the knowledge of forest peoples, demonstrating that in rural communities’ science is also done, with its own techniques and methodologies, coming from local experimentation. It was concluded that rural communities play the role of caregiver of local biodiversity, due to their relationship with the ecosystem, recognizing the importance of research to understand the existing dynamics in the quest to overcome "metabolic failures", so that they occur, in fact, sustainable development, with the autonomy and prominence of traditional knowledge and science.