Ecological connections and territorial planning: potentialities and contradictions

Abstract

Ecological connectivity is recognized in the literature as a vital factor for reestablishing biodiversity patterns and for mitigating the impacts of climate change. In 2017, the 20 municipalities of the Metropolitan Region of Campinas (RMC) in southeastern Brazil entered into a Term of Agreement to implement an ecological connectivity initiative called the Reconecta Project. This article seeks to identify and analyze the relationships between the project's proposed route and the territorial planning mechanisms established by Brazilian legislation. The methodology employed involved overlaying various informational layers to establish numerical relationships between land use, the territorial planning system established by the three federal levels of government, and the project itself. The findings reveal that the Reconecta Project is located within a landscape matrix that is not conducive to ecological connectivity, as it contains few forest fragments. Although legal land-use planning mechanisms have been adopted, their potential has not been fully realized.