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Dear Rainforest Guardians,
After the the record planting season in 2018, where we planted 6,000 seedlings we have now moved on to the next step, Monitoring!
Do you want to know how we are getting on?
Here in the Atlantic Rainforest it has rained more than usual, which has made our seedlings jump for joy!
We are currently visiting the properties in the community where we planted, recording information, such as: mortality, ant attacks, if the plants are being cared for (if not, why), if they require more organic fertilizer, need replanting, development, which species are developing or dying etc. Identifying and addressing any problems to give the seedlings the best chance of success!
We are only at the beginning of monitoring, so there is still a lot of data to collect and analyze. That said, we have already begun to identify some trends.
Of 5 properties we visited there are already some species that stand out such as: Guapuruvu and Adrago, which are seedlings that have adapted really well! (Look at the size of them! This Adrago, was planted in January and is bigger than me!)
You can also keep up with the planting progress via our map: Mapa ArcGIS
It has been so satisfying to visit the properties and see the growth of the seedlings, and witness the beginnings of new forest growth! We cannot begin to express the gratitude that we (the community, volunteers,the Atlantic Rainforest, fauna, flora) feel in being able to make a positive difference to the life of an individual, a family, a spring, a water course, to nature. All this has only been possible thanks to YOU, doing your part, believing in our work and contributing to our cause.
I cannot stress enough how much YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
I wish each and every one of you could visit us and see EVERYTHING that you have helped us achieve. Who knows, maybe you would like to come and give us a hand to plant the next round in Mid-October / November 2019?!
In addition to the good news that the seedlings are doing incredibly well, we have already started planning for this year’s planting.
We are at full force and feeling very inspired in 2019!
The nursery has recently had all its planting tables renovated, and Deivid, our main man in the nursery, has been working hard collecting and germinating many different kinds of seeds! (Let's see if you can guess the trees of the following seeds and seedlings!)
Incredibly, we already have 6,000-7,000 seedlings developing in the nursery for planting later this year!
We recently produced E.M (Efficient microorganisms) which are tiny bacterias and fungi that live naturally in fertile soils and in plants. They can be used in agriculture and animal husbandry and are extremely cost effective and easy to produce. There are several advantages in applying them, such as:
We are applying E.M to our seedlings and organic compost in the nursery and have already seen fantastic results in terms of growth!
As you can see, time is flying here in the Rainforest and as it does we become more inspired, growing in both strength and numbers as more and more people join us in our efforts to reforest the Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil!
Our eternal gratitude to each and every one of you!
With much love and gratitude, as always!
Arielle, Ecoleaders, Deivid, Team Iracambi, Volunteers, and of course the Atlantic Rainforest
Links:
With the generous contribution from BVSA (Bolsa de Valores Socioambiental) and 363 individual donations, 2018 was a fantastic year for the Forests for Water Project and we made great progress.
Iracambi planted 6,000 NATIVE TREES of 65 species in 30 PROPERTIES in 3 municipalities in the Muriaé River Basin and the surrounding Serra do Brigadeiro area to combat water scarcity.
In addition to involving local and international STUDENTS and VOLUNTEERS, the Forests for Water project placed 30th in the water category of the Latin America Green Award, which selects the 500 best socio-environmental projects in Latin America.
New regional partnerships have strengthened the project with the delivery of two courses; "Protection and Recovery of Springs" and "Water Planters" provided by SENAR and the We are Water Network, which together trained 33 people.
In local partnerships, DEMSUR (Department of Basic Sanitation of Muriaé) donated 700 fence posts to the local community involved in the project.
In addition, we analysed the water of the springs to be reforested by the project using the following parameters:
Of the 30 samples, only ONE SPRING complies with all the safe levels required for human consumption.
Feedback from our project beneficiaries:
"When I was younger, my father did not care much about water, now that the farm is in my hands, I want to protect our most precious resource: water. After the crisis we experienced in 2014/2015 we can see the importance of this natural resource! Without it family farming, animals, plants would simply not exist".
Antônio - Ervália.
"in 2014/2015 our spring dried up! My brothers had to walk 3/4 miles with a wheelbarrow to collect drinking water and water to wash my crochet to sell at the market. Many of our neighbors made artesian wells, but we did not want that. We decided to plant some trees around the spring, and the spring returned and never dried up again! Since then we take as much care as possible to protect the spring, because we learnt the hard way the challenges a lack of water bring".
Maria - Ancorado, Rosário da Limeira.
The challenge for 2019 is to plant CILIARY FOREST (on the banks of the river) that work like eyelashes, preventing flooding, silting, erosion, and has the capacity to retain nutrients and contaminants.
Reducing the pollution of water sources, besides creating habitats, forms forest corridors which facilitate the movement and propagation of wild animals and flora.
Most importantly, WITHOUT YOUR HELP, NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE!
Whether you are donating, partnering, volunteering, promoting our work, encouraging people to be more environmentally sustainable, YOU MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE!
THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!
With love and Iracambi hugs,
Arielle Canedo, the Iracambi team, young people from R. da Limeira, Belisário, Ervália, farming families and mother nature! (Have you noticed we’re growing?!)
Links:
Dear Atlantic Forest Champions,
It’s raining like crazy in the rainforest and that’s why we’ve been working overtime this quarter!
By mid October it was already time to start buying our organic fertilizer. It was easy to get the lime, but organic fertilizer from chicken houses was another story! Apart from sending the truck along the wrong road (because we usually get around by motorbike) we stayed up late figuring out the right road and then we had to put it all into sacks - which was a bit of a nightmare, especially since it smells really, really bad. But, if you grit your teeth and keep smiling, things work out, don’t they?
We paid fifty visits to prospective farms, and chose thirty, based on interest and need. And the seven hundred fence posts donated by the local water and sanitation company were distributed to thirteen farmers who needed to fence off their springs.
After doing the soil analyses we learned that all the soils on these properties are degraded and not easily infiltrated. We applied lime to correct the acidity in the soil, and the fertilizer from the chicken houses which is rich in nitrogen, lime, phosphorus and magnesium - all essential elements for good plant growth. This organic material is essential to improve the structure of the soil, its capacity to retain water, and to help the proliferation of micro-organisms and worms. We used around half a kilo of chicken fertilizer for each tree, and different quantities of lime depending on the soil analysis.
And this weekend we finished taking water samples, really interested in finding out the results. But we’re pretty sure the water quality is bad and we’ve already planned how to fix it!
PLANTING
Even in the pouring rain the planting doesn’t stop - lots of learning from one another, story telling, laughter, and like all country folk in this state, lots of coffee and cake at the end of the day. As for our volunteer coordinator Lisa - she even fell into a (shallow) well!
In the farms where the fencing has been done and the soil and water analyses we moved onto the next stage of the project with the help of Marcos, Vanderson and Gabriel, who helped getting ready for planting. Luiz and I delivered the seedlings and then it was time to move ahead.
As part of our outreach program we managed to get twelve schoolkids to help outm and together we planted five hundred seedlings on Antonio’s farm. And of course had coffee and cake to celebrate.... Later we visited a different school and recruited another team of twelve who joined us after school to plant trees to protect water resources in the town. And this week we signed up a group of seventeen from another school to add weight to our team!
First we give a quick practical lesson about our forest biome - some of the students don’t even know they live in the Atlantic Forest! - talk about the importance of water and the droughts of 2014/15, explain what is the water catchment area and why it’s important to reforest it. And we’ve been happily surprised by the energy of these kids. They always show up, climb up steep hillsides to plant trees and don’t seem to get discouraged. They’re real warriors! (We’re thinking of taking them on a hike up Graminha Mountain as a surprise - but don’t tell them!)
So we’re really happy and grateful, because, as well as helping families that have been really short of water, and families that wanted to reforest in order to avoid future water shortages, we’re also helping schoolchildren learn to love nature. We’re sure that whatever they do in life they’ll be environmentalists. And it’s great for the kids and the farmers to get together - they all learn a lot. Which is an added bonus, and something we never expected.
So we’ve managed to finish platning on half the properties, and we plan to finish them all by the end of the month so as to give the seedlings the best possible chance during the rainy season which goes on till the end of March/April. And we’d like to send a big THANK YOU to each one of you for your help, because without you we wouldn’t have this project. And together we’re planting trees, restoring the forest and inspiring the next generation. Thank you, thank you! You are the real angels of the forest.
With much love,
Arielle, Luiz, schoolchildren of Limeira, Belisario and Ervália, local farmers and, of course, Mother Nature. (The family is growing, right?)
Links:
Dear Rainforest Guardian,
Greetings from the Atlantic Rainforest!
As always we are full of stories to share with you.
Our colleague Fagner who looks after the nursery, recently became a dad! Inspired by Iracambi’s Agroecology project (which works with speciality coffee, a vegetable garden and SAF-Agroforestry Systems) Fagner has decided to leave the nursery and become a full-time coffee farmer. We are very happy for him and wish him all the best in his new venture!
As fate would have it, Régis an Agroecologist who volunteered in Iracambi in 2009, has never forgotten what he lived and learned. He recently returned with a mission: to produce lots of seedlings to reforest the Serra do Brigadeiro!
Régis, has now become our nursery manager and is doing an excellent job! He has reformed the nursery greenhouse, is developing a seed bank, and is continuing the work of producing and taking care of our beautiful seedlings.
But the good news does not stop there…
GREEN AWARDS LATIN AMERICA
Iracambi’s Forest for Water project receives an award!
The Latin America Green Award seeks to showcase 500 of the best projects that stimulate the green economy through regional initiatives. There are 10 categories aligned with the Sustainable Development Objectives (ODS) of Latin America. Iracambi’s Forest for Water project was ranked 30th in the water category!
The award is not only a great achievement, it is confirmation that we are on the right track, working with the community for the conservation and production of water!
VISITS
We are now finalizing the initial visits to conduct a general diagnostic of the properties and collect soil and water samples for analysis, the demand is enormous!
It has been so encouraging to meet people who are aware of the issue and want to be proactive in water preservation.
Antonio from Ervália wants to reforest a very large area and told us why:
"When I was younger, my father did not care much about water, now that the farm is in my hands, I want to protect our most precious resource: water. After the crisis we experienced in 2014/2015 we can see the importance of this natural resource! Without it family farming, animals, plants would simply not exist".
Another advocate of water preservation is Dona Maria from the Ancorado community, in Rosário da Limeira:
"in 2014/2015 our spring dried up! My brothers had to walk 3/4 miles with a wheelbarrow to collect drinking water and water to wash my crochet to sell at the market. Many of our neighbors made artesian wells, but we did not want that. We decided to plant some trees around the spring, and the spring returned and never dried up again! Since then we take as much care as possible to protect the spring, because we learnt the hard way the challenges a lack of water bring".
It is amazing to share and partake in these moments of difficulty, strength, perseverance, success and relief when a spring is restored. It really is a priceless achievement!
DEMSUR PARTNERSHIP
The partnership with DEMSUR is surpassing our expectations!
In addition to analyzing the waters of each farmer, they are donating 50 concrete fence posts to 14 producers who have not yet fenced their water spring. In return, we have met, analyzed and selected 5 producers in the region of Muriaé Sanitary Landfill, where DEMSUR carry out their main activity.
So far we have analyzed 4 water samples from 30 springs, and the results are proving to be very interesting and informative! I look forward to sharing the analyses and results when we are finished!
PLANTING FOR WATER COURSE
On 08/31/2018 to 01/09/2018, Iracambi as part of the Rede Nós de Água network, organized a "Planting for Water" course with our neighbors and friends from the Franciscan Village in Belisário, a district of Muriaé.
There were 20-22 participants from various locations, Rosário da Limeira, Belisário, Viçosa, São Paulo, Araponga, among others. We held a theoretical class on the 31st on the distribution and dynamics of water on the planet, water basins (concepts, interpretation and reading), the water cycle, water related legislation, key issues and challenges related to water, and concepts and techniques of planting for water. We also looked at the implementation of fixed water structures (dry boxes, spring boxes, level curves) and green manure and rural sanitation technologies (evapotranspiration tank, biodigester, septic tank, dry toilet).
After that, we identified the water basin where we were located, which is the Paraíba do Sul River Basin, Muriaé River sub-basin, in the Fumaça River micro basin.
We conducted a diagnosis of the entire village, looking at the condition of the tops of the surrounding hills, identifying the location of the springs and whether they were fenced or not, whether there was adequate rural sanitation, the condition of the pasture etc… We worked on two fronts: one of them was leveling a degraded pasture and planting vegetables and another was to start building a dry toilet!
After this intensive experience, our goal for 2019 is to develop the project further! We want to plant trees, and develop partnerships to assist us with items such as septic tanks, spring boxes, dams, along with other techniques of production, storage and water quality! There is no point in producing water of poor quality, just as there is no point thinking only about the quality and forgetting that it is the forests that "produce" water!
MINING IN ROSÄRIO DA LIMEIRA
After the hearings held by the Commission, we learned of an Operating License that covers the municipality of Rosário da Limeira, and part of this area is APA (Environmental Protection Area), where mining is prohibited. We are currently looking for ways to revoke the license.
On 08/20/2018 we also held a meeting with the community of Ancorado in Rosario da Limeira explaining the progress of mining here in the region and the news of the Operating License. W continue to listen to what the community wants and develop strategies of how we will react to this news that makes mining an ever increasing threat in our lives!
In addition, the Commission for Combating Mining in the Buffer Zone of the Serra do Brigadeiro, together with the Southeast Minas Gerais Federal Institute and the Federal University of Viçosa on 08/27/2018 we held the third workshop on the social mapping of Belisário. The objective of the workshops is to build up a picture of our resources: waterfalls, springs, houses, animals, family farming, hiking, events, churches, among many other things instead of the empty maps that the mining company work with!
WITHOUT YOU, NOTHING WOULD BE POSSIBLE!
Dear friends, THANK YOU for believing in our work and doing your part for a better world!
You are the ones who give us support and motivation to continue. Together we work just like the forest ants, because when each one performs his part, anywhere in the world, TOGETHER, we make a positive difference in the life of each Maria and Antonio in each of the four corners of our amazing planet.
With love,
Arielle, Luiz, the farming families and Mother Nature!
Want to learn more about what we have planned for ‘Forests for Water’ in 2018?
Continue reading, we have great news!
A few improvements
We have made changes to the type of data we collect. Until recently we only collected data on local families, springs, fences and proposed reforestation areas using Geographical Information Systems (ArcGIS) with the support of our great friend and partner Cliff.
This year, in order to be more effective, we added new fields to document planting (germination, delivery, planting, species of seedlings planted, fertilizers used, etc.) and monitoring (observing ant attacks, crowning seedlings, mortality, etc.). By adding these fields we hope to produce reliable qualitative and quantitative data to help make more informed decisions and measure the success of the plantings, allowing us to address any problems effectively.
In 2018 we plan to produce 6,000 seedlings to plant in 30 properties in 3 municipalities surrounding the Serra do Brigadeiro.
Fagner has been hard at work, collecting seedlings and seeds, preparing bags for planting and irrigating the nursery. Fagner has been supported by some fantastic volunteers from abroad and young people from Rosário da Limeira; Scott, Anthony, Remco, Celle, Karolainy, Anderson, Flay and Ronald!
It was an incredible experience interacting with the young people from the local community, who were enthusiastic and engaged throughout! After all the hard work, we made a beautiful bonfire to celebrate our increasing appreciation of our amazing surroundings.
BOVESPA SOCIOAMBIENTAL
More great news! After 1 year of our project being listed on the BVSA platform, we have managed to raise $ 30,000 that will be invested in the project during a period of one year, beginning 03/28/2018.
Thanks to this new funding, along with the donations from each one of YOU, we have made even more progress:
Partnership with DEMSUR
We are always looking to improve our projects and have recently identified water analysis as a great way to achieve this. Iracambi has some equipment that measures PH, turbidity, flow among other measurements, enabling us to analyze if the reforestation affects the quality of the water over time and increase our project outcomes.
Unfortunately, most of the equipment is not in good condition.
We are looking to partner with DEMSUR (Municipal Department of Urban Sanitation) who are are also working with reforestation in Muriaé. We proposed to support them by providing them with access to ArcGIS to collect and analyze information, and they in return have offered to support us with water analysis
The initial idea is conduct a water analysis of each spring that we recover. We will conduct an analysis before planting, and then once a year for a period of 3 years using the following parameters:
Total coliforms (also used to analyze the presence of domestic sewage) and E. Coli are to verify the quality of water. Turbidity is the measurement of the resistance of water to the passage of light and color refers exactly to the color of water.
We have seen that surface erosive processes affect two parameters in a more specific way: color and turbidity, being able to demonstrate changes in the hydro sedimentary dynamics of a basin as a consequence of the accelerated erosion.
Thus, turbidity is a very useful environmental indicator when analyzing watersheds, since it is possible to associate soil use and erosion, for the purpose of identifying damages in water courses related to human activities.
SENAR Course
From 05/28/2018 to 05/30/2018 Iracambi hosted a course on Protection and Recovery of springs led by SENAR (National Rural Apprenticeship Service). There were 11 participants, 2 of which were Iracambistas - (myself Arielle and Fagner) always aiming to acquire more knowledge.
We had a theoretical class in the morning of the 28th on spring definition, the types of springs, soil formation, among other subjects, such as silting, erosion, water basins, methodologies to increase water flow, like nitrates and terraces and went to the field to identify and choose a spring to start working on.
The spring we chose is located in a degraded area of pasture, without a fence and silted, due, mainly, to a road just above the pasture.
We identified it to be a sloped spring with an initial flow of 925 liters per day. After we cleared the área we increased the flow to more than 2500 liters per day!!
After having a clearer view of the paths where the water was flowing, we used marlua stones so as not to cover the waterways, these stones help in the filtration of the water, in addition we we put in a pipe for sewage, 3 pipes for water capture and a further 3 for surplus..
After organizing the stones, we covered the área with tarpaulin (serving as an insulator, not letting the cement fall into the water) and mixing tundish earth with cement to fix it
With this methodology, the silting of the source is avoided and protected.
It was great to learn a different methodology, we hope to use our new-found knowledge and apply it to Iracambi’s projects.
Initial Visits to Landowners and Properties
We started the visits armed with new methods of monitoring of planting, soil and water analysis which has been fantastic!
Initial visits allow us to better understand the reality of the families and their properties, as well as to explain about the project.
The landowners accompanied us during the visits, where together we chose the best place for reforestation, counted and identified the source of the springs, collected samples for analysis, spoke about the issue of water scarcity and reflected on the importance of water for agriculture, animals, humanity and our world.
We assess each property and try to ascertain the following information: number of residents, length of time at property, size of area, crops produced, main water source, water usage, how many springs they have, how many have dried out, what surrounds the springs, if they have trees near the spring, if they have small dams, dry boxes, terraces or any other structures for water retention, if not, we scope their interest. We also enquire about how they deal with domestic sewage.
We use this information to make a thorough assessment of each property to decide the best approach according to the individual needs of each family/property.
PUBLIC HEARING IN R. DA LIMEIRA ON MINING
Since the end of last year, the Commission for Combating Mining in the Surroundings Areas of the Serra do Brigadeiro (of which Iracambi is a member) has held hearings in several municipalities such as Muriaé, Miradouro and most recently in Rosário da Limeira on 04/04 / 2018.
More than 300 people attended including the Deputy Mayor and local Council who lent their support.
We made positive progress in many areas such as: the demarcation of the territory to be free from mining, highlighting the importance of family agriculture, motion of repudiation of the Council against mining in the municipality of Rosário da Limeira and a future audience at the Legislative Assembly of the State of Minas Gerais
After the hearing, on May 2, there was a meeting in the Chamber of Rosário da Limeira, where the local Councillors voted unanimously on the motion of repudiation against mining in Rosário da Limeira, a fantastic result!!
In the words of Sigmund Freud: "One day, when you look back, you will see that the most beautiful days were those that you fought for."
Seizing Wild Birds from Illegal Capturers
On World Environment Day (05/06) we were given a mission by our dear friend Kamilo, partner and member of the project Forests for Water. Kamilio brought to our attention a very serious and sad matter where 46 birds native to the Atlantic Forest were seized, some of which are threatened with extinction!! Kamilio brought the birds to us to care for and release.
After cleaning the cages, we fed and watered the birds and released the birds as soon as they were strong enough.
The existence of vegetation cover and biodiversity of the flora depend directly on the action of the birds, considered the "planters of the forest", because they feed on the native fruits and disperse the seeds in all areas in their range.
You Make the Difference!
Well, dear friends, many things have happened here in the Tropical Forest, and YOU are doing your part for a better world! Be it donating, volunteering, spreading the word about our work, or encouraging people in the cause!!
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
We are eternally grateful to each of you for every contribution and all your support, as without you none of this would be happening!
You are planting water, saving lives, birds, agriculture, supporting several towns in a big fight against a huge mining company, and you are making a DIFFERENCE in the WORLD !!
The Atlantic Rainforest is the world’s most endangered biome, who knows, if it was not for you and so many other institutions, it would not exist anymore! But we still NEED YOU!
The Atlantic Rainforest continues in its fight for survival, help us save it!
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