Anthropogenic environmental pressures in urban conservation units: a case study in Belém, Brazilian eastern Amazon

Abstract

Over 70% of the Amazon inhabitants live in cities. Moreover, the contest between urban and green areas is historically known. In this scenario, the green areas in the Eastern Amazon cities are now beneath constant pressure and some of its ecosystem services can be reduced because of environmental stress. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate environmental stressors in two urban conservation units in the Brazilian Eastern Amazon. To understand how the urbanisation affected both the eutrophication process and forest resilience in the study area, we investigated the literature about the urban sprawl in Belém city and analysed, through remote sensing techniques, the responses for vegetation and built-up indices in the last 30 years. The results showed that the city expansion had not considered sustainable criteria, which ultimately intensified the anthropic eutrophication of the Bolonha Lake. Despite anthropogenic and climate pressures in the last decades over the green areas of Belém, the forest within the park showed no signal of reduced resilience. Lastly, joint efforts are necessary to improve wastewater treatment in the Metropolitan Region of Belém, so the water quality of the reservoirs improve, and its macrophytes blooming reduce gradually.