Protected Areas

iver-side populations, babaçueiros,vazanteiros and quilombola communitiesthat together are part of the historic andcultural heritage of Brazil and hold thetraditional knowledge of its biodiversity.Over 220 species have medicinal usesand more than 416 can be used in therecovery of degraded soils, as windbarriers, protection against erosion orto create habitats for many naturalpredators to plagues. Over 10 types ofedible fruits are regularly consumed bythe local population and sold in urbancenters. These fruits include the pequi(Caryocar brasiliense), buriti (Mauritiaflexuosa), mangaba (Hancornia speciosa),cagaita (Eugenia dysenterica), bacupari(Salacia crassifolia), the cerrado cashew(Anacardium humile), araticum (Annonacrassifólia) and the baru seeds (Dipteryxalata).Nonetheless, innumerous plant andanimal species are endangered. It isestimated that 20% of the native andendemic species are no longer presentin the protected areas and that at least137 animal species of the Cerrado arein danger of becoming extinct. Afterthe Atlantic Forest, the Cerrado is theBrazilian biome that most sufferedchanges due to human occupation. Withthe increasing pressure for opening newareas for incrementing beef and grainproduction for exports, and the recentdemand for biofuels, there has been aprogressive depletion of natural resourcesin the region. In the past three decades,the Cerrado has been degraded by theexpansion of the Brazilian agriculturalfrontiers. Furthermore, the Cerrado biomesuffers a highly predatory exploitation ofits lumber for coal production.Vegetation Coverage of the CerradoBiomeStudies have demonstrated that thisbiome is currently facing seriousthreats. In a recent study launchedby the Ministry for the Environmentbased on satellite images of 2002, itwas concluded that 61% of Cerradoareas are still covered by the biome’snatural vegetation, which includes nativepastures. Nonetheless, no assessment ofthe conservation status of these lands hasbeen made. Based on 2002, the resultsfound were as follows:28