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Pressure Indicators of Wood Resource Use in an Atlantic Forest Area, Northeastern Brazil

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Abstract

Wood resources are often used to support the needs of the local population. In order to protect biodiversity and resources, conservation strategies need to consider what types of wood use have the strongest impacts on forested areas. This study aimed to identify the use categories that put higher pressure on an Atlantic forest region located in the municipality of Igarassu in Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil. To conduct the study, we measured the volume of all wood products in 62 surveyed residences and registered the average replacement time for such products. The fuelwood category was most important locally and accounted for 92% of annual wood consumption. However, the construction category harvests more destructively and concentrates on the consumption of a few wood species. Therefore we recommend the fuelwood category to be the main focus of conservation effforts. In addition, the most important species for construction purposes (e.g., Eschweilera ovata (Cambess.) Miers, Apuleia leiocarpa (Vogel) J.F. Macbr. and Pogonophora schomburgkiana Miers ex Benth) should also be considered as a priority for conservation.

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Acknowledgments

Financial contributions to the project “Sustainability of remnants of the Atlantic rainforest in Pernambuco and its implications for conservation and local development”, a Brazilian-German scientific cooperation within the program “Science and Technology for the Atlantic Rainforest” were made by CNPq and BMBF. Our thanks extend to the community of Três Ladeiras for their participation in the research, especially to Vanduís Valdino da Silva by help in the fieldwork. The Usina São José S.A. / Grupo Cavalcanti Petribú kindly allowed access to their properties and supported fieldwork logistically. Our gratitude also goes to CNPq for the financial aid and productivity Grant for research awarded to U.P. Albuquerque

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Etnobotânica Aplicada, Departamento de Biologia, Área de Botânica, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Av. Dom Manoel de Medeiros s/n, Dois Irmãos, CEP: 52171-900, Recife, Pernambuco, Brasil

    Patrícia Muniz de Medeiros, Alyson Luiz Santos de Almeida, Taline Cristina da Silva & Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque

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  1. Patrícia Muniz de Medeiros
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  2. Alyson Luiz Santos de Almeida
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  3. Taline Cristina da Silva
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  4. Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque.

Appendix

Appendix

See Table 4

Table 4 Species used for wood purposes in the community of Três Ladeiras, municipality of Igarassu, Northeastern Brazil. Static volume (vol.) and Frequency of occurrence (Freq.) of each species for the use categories
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de Medeiros, P.M., de Almeida, A.L.S., da Silva, T.C. et al. Pressure Indicators of Wood Resource Use in an Atlantic Forest Area, Northeastern Brazil. Environmental Management 47, 410–424 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-011-9618-3

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