Agricultural Occupation Strategies for Ecological Interest Areas - Agroforestry Systems with Coffee at Guapimirim Municipality, Rio de Janeiro state.
buffer zone, natural resources conservation, agroforestry practices.
The conventional agricultural model, based on technologies of high use of chemical inputs, created a situation of competition with the local environment. In the state of Rio de Janeiro, this process occurs since the arrival of the European colonizer. The direct exploitation of the wood and the monoculture of sugar cane and coffee were determinant in the marked degradation of its forest area. Agroforestry systems are part of secular strategies that allow, especially in tropical areas, to establish a mode of production that maintains and renews natural resources. A group of farmers, established in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro and in the area of relevant conservation units, was the basis for this case study. They are family farmers who participate in the Association of Rural Producers and Artisans of the Fojo Microbasin (AFOJO), located in the municipality of Guapimirim. The study was carried out with families selected for practicing agroforestry with coffee as one of the main products. Data were collected through technical meetings, visits to six production units, where cross-walks and semi-structured interviews were carried out. Information was also sought from the extension and technical advisory bodies that worked with the group. The objective was to obtain data on their productive systems and social and economic aspects. The results showed that the families studied were well established and producing food in agroforestry systems still under construction. They used techniques of low use of external inputs, which aimed to conserve natural resources and maintain the sustainability of the system. Technical monitoring was mainly done by non-governmental organizations. One positive aspect was the evidence of the maintenance of the forest environment, adequate to the original natural ecosystem of the region. The group took advantage of the proximity to the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro as an opportunity to sell directly to the consumer their differentiated, organic and certified products. They generated income and guaranteed family maintenance, conserving natural resources and resisting urban pressure on their region. None of the farmers showed a need to change activity.