Abstract
Every spatial unit of human occupation is part of a network structuring an extensive process of urbanization in the Amazon territory. Multi-resolution remote sensing data were used to identify and map human presence and activities in the Sustainable Forest District of Cuiabá-Santarém highway (BR-163), west of Pará, Brazil. The limits of spatial units of human occupation were mapped based on digital classification of Landsat-TM5 (Thematic Mapper 5) image (30m spatial resolution). High-spatial-resolution CBERS-HRC (China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite-High-Resolution Camera) images (5 m) merged with CBERS-CCD (Charge Coupled Device) images (20 m) were used to map spatial arrangements inside each populated unit, describing intra-urban characteristics. Fieldwork data validated and refined the classification maps that supported the categorization of the units. A total of 133 spatial units were individualized, comprising population centers as municipal seats, villages and communities, and units of human activities, such as sawmills, farmhouses, landing strips, etc. From the high-resolution analysis, 32 population centers were grouped in four categories, described according to their level of urbanization and spatial organization as: structured, recent, established and dependent on connectivity. This multi-resolution approach provided spatial information about the urbanization process and organization of the territory. It may be extended into other areas or be further used to devise a monitoring system, contributing to the discussion of public policy priorities for sustainable development in the Amazon.
Highlights
The largest area of continuous and preserved tropical forest in the world is in the Brazilian Amazon, covering 3,250,511 km2 [1]
The first Sustainable Forest District (SFD) in Brazil was created in February 2006 in the southwest area of Pará state, which comprises the area of influence of the BR-163 highway (SFD-BR163)
We identified and delineated 133 spatial units of human occupation in SFD-BR163 that correspond to population centers and areas where infrastructure enables the development of human activities
Summary
The largest area of continuous and preserved tropical forest in the world is in the Brazilian Amazon, covering 3,250,511 km2 [1]. Padoch et al [5] argued that family networks related to the circulation of goods, access to employment, education, and health services spanning rural and urban areas make urban areas an integral part of the expansion of rural areas, and vice versa They found evidence for new forms of household arrangements that connect urban and rural areas; these arrangements respond to opportunities and constraints created by limited service infrastructure, employment, and global commodities markets for regional products. They observed that households from the Amazon “urban forest” continue to move to cities and redefine what it is to be urban, as well as what it means to be rural; these households are transforming the forests and cities in the Amazon territory. According to Browder, this interface does not correspond to a geographic area or space between the urban built environment and rural landscape but to an array of networks connecting urban and rural agents
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