• Highlights

• Disaggregation by Hydrographic Macroregion: IBGE organizes environmental and population data based on the 12 Hydrographic Macroregions, gathering physical, biotic, and resident population information.
• Population distribution: The Hydrographic Macroregions of Paraná and Southeast Atlantic concentrate almost half of Brazil's population, while larger macroregions, such as the Amazon and Tocantins-Araguaia, have lower population density.
• Land use: Between 2000 and 2020, there was an increase in agricultural areas, pastures, and forestry over natural vegetation areas, with the biggest change in the Amazon and Tocantins-Araguaia macroregions.
• Susceptibility to landslides: The change in relief and geological structure is associated with differences in susceptibility, with higher proportions in the Southeast Atlantic and South Atlantic macroregions.

Ecosystem diversity and territorial changes reveal challenges for environmental management

Brazil's physiographic diversity, which reflects a variety of rocks, reliefs, soils, and vegetation, also greatly influences human settlement, as well as land use.

Each Hydrographic Macroregion presents a unique combination of structural provinces, types of relief, soils, and vegetation. In the Amazon region, for example, Plateaus (35.69%) and Depressions (28.71%) predominate, with Argisols (40.21%) and Dense Ombrophilous Forests (44.51%).

In the Paraná Hydrographic Macroregion, under the eponymous province, Plateaus (68.98%) and Oxisols (52.91%) stand out, covered by Savannas (35.25%) and Semi-deciduous Seasonal Forests (27.05%).

In Southeastern Atlantic, mountains (33.45%) and steep slopes support Seasonal Semideciduous Forests (51.56%) and Dense Ombrophilous Forests (32.60%).

This Hydrographic Macroregion is where the areas most susceptible to landslides are concentrated, totaling 61.51% of the territory in the Very High class, mainly due to the predominance of mountainous relief. This aspect is also observed to a lesser extent in the Southern Atlantic (18.35%) and Eastern Atlantic (15.56%).

Considering the same aspect, the Paraguay, Parnaíba, and São Francisco Hydrographic Macroregions show low susceptibility, associated with flatter relief forms, with 47.94%, 45.77%, and 43.30%, respectively, of their lands classified in the Very Low class.

No que diz respeito à dinâmica territorial, entre os anos 2000 e 2020, todas as MacroRHs estiveram sujeitas a alterações de cobertura e de uso da terra pelas atividades humanas, com um avanço das áreas consideradas antropizadas sobre aquelas consideradas naturais florestais e naturais não florestais.

Em termos proporcionais, o maior incremento de áreas antropizadas ocorreu na MacroRH Amazônica, as quais passaram de 264.896 km², em 2000, para 478.882 km², em 2020, o que representa um aumento de 80,78%. O menor avanço ocorreu na Atlântico Sudeste (1,61%), com suas áreas antropizadas passando de 164.964 km² para 167.627 km².

As maiores perdas, em termos proporcionais, de áreas naturais florestais e naturais não florestais ocorreram, respectivamente, nas MacroRHs do Tocantins-Araguaia e Paraná. Na primeira, a redução foi 28,67% (78.027 km²), enquanto na segunda, 27,75% (22.607 km²).

“Essa compreensão integrada de informações é essencial para reforçar a importância de considerar a pluralidade dos ecossistemas brasileiros, tanto para o planejamento territorial, quanto para a gestão de recursos hídricos e para a avaliação de riscos ambientais. As informações reunidas pelo IBGE oferecem subsídios técnicos valiosos para políticas ambientais e para o fortalecimento da contabilidade e estatística ambiental no Brasil”, conclui Ivone.

Além dos dados estatísticos, os usuários também podem consultar e baixar o recorte geográfico de Macrorregião Hidrográfica na página do Quadro Geográfico e na Plataforma Geográfica Interativa (PGI).