Implemented by the Copaíba Environmental Association, the initiative is the result of a partnership between the institutions Sylvamo and WWF-Brazil

Covering an area of over 5,277 km², distributed across several municipalities in Minas Gerais and São Paulo, the Rio do Peixe sub-basin directly benefits thousands of people, contributing to the urban and rural water supply of several cities through the river and its tributaries. Despite the importance of the Basin for maintaining activities in dozens of municipalities, since the 1970s, the springs and biodiversity of the area have been threatened, as a result of the intensification of agriculture, especially with the expansion of sugarcane cultivation in the region, which has resulted in significant deforestation and the increased use of pesticides.

In this scenario, in 2019, a partnership between the global institutions Sylvamo and WWF-Brazil, carried out by the Copaíba Environmental Association, began the Raízes do Mogi Guaçu program in the region of the Rio do Peixe Hydrographic sub-basin, whose objective is to identify, recover and restore springs and areas of interaction between vegetation, soil and the watercourse in the river region. 

In six years of work in the area, celebrated last December, the project has 225 hectares of land undergoing ecological restoration, with the planting of 282,600 seedlings, contributing to the protection of 115 springs and 4,000 meters of riverbank, according to the most recent survey carried out by Copaíba. According to Ana Paula Balderi, Ecological Restoration Coordinator at Copaíba, 76 streams are being protected by the initiative, totaling 21,238 meters of riverbank undergoing restoration. The goal is to have more than 480 hectares of degraded areas become forests by 2026.  

“We are planting native trees from the Atlantic Forest and since the beginning of these 6 years of the program we have had partnerships with 71 landowners in the municipalities of Águas de Lindóia, Itapira, Serra Negra and Socorro in the state of São Paulo and at the headwaters of the Rio do Peixe are the municipalities of Bueno Brandão, Monte Sião and Munhoz in Minas Gerais, totaling 7 municipalities that participate in the program”, explains the member of Copaíba.

To achieve these results, the program relies on the support of landowners whose land is located in the sub-basin area. Supporters work to restore strategic areas and receive several benefits provided by Raízes do Mogi Guaçu, ranging from donations of native seedlings, planting supplies and technical support for planting to the provision of materials for fencing springs, streams and rivers. 

According to the project coordinator, Raízes do Mogi Guaçu is a program open to public participation and aims to expand its actions in nine cities supplied by the Hydrographic Basin. “Landowners in the municipalities of Águas de Lindóia, Lindóia, Itapira, Serra Negra and Socorro, in the state of São Paulo, and Bueno Brandão, Bom Repouso, Senador Amaral, Monte Sião and Munhoz, in the state of Minas Gerais, can contribute to recovering and preserving springs by getting in touch with Copaíba,” she explains.

The contact channel to join Raízes do Mogi Guaçu is WhatsApp: (19) 99667-0229. To learn more about the program, visit: https://copaiba.org.br/restauracao-florestal/.