Water Quality and Agricultural Sustainability in the Mantiqueira Ecological Corridor, Brazil

Abstract

The presence of fecal coliforms is one of the determinants for classification of the quality of water bodies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the water quality and surrounding land use in the area known as the Mantiqueira Ecological Corridor, which straddles the borders of the states of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais, in Brazil. More particularly, we studied ten municipalities in Minas Gerais located in the region surrounding Serra do Papagaio State Park and Ibitipoca State Park. We established a classification of water bodies in the area surrounding the collection points in drainage basins based on the principles of sustainability. Using TM/Landsat 5 images, SPOTMap mosaics and the SRTM digital elevation model, we correlated land use classes with the environmental contamination index and topographic characteristics of the area studied. The presence of agriculture and urban areas heightened the differences in water quality classification in the comparison between the dry and rainy seasons, while in forested areas there was a greater equilibrium, with the same classification between the two seasons.