Land use capacity in two traditional rural communities in Paraná

Abstract

The main objective of this article was to identify the land use capacity in two faxinals, Lageado de Baixo in Mallet and Lageado dos Mello in Rio Azul, both in Paraná. The local people, the faxinalense farmers, established bonds of understanding regarding the productive aptitude of these lands, by recognizing and classifying them into the best and worst for their proper uses. This local knowledge is transmitted orally from generation to generation. The agricultural landscapes of the faxinals in the state of Paraná bear the marks of this knowledge historically rooted in the territory. Through a utilitarian survey of the physical environment in partnership with local farmers and their information, in relation to the local knowledge of the landscape, a land use capacity map was proposed for two surveyed faxinals. The survey results show that more than 26% of the area is not suitable for agriculture and should be used for permanent crops or preservation of flora and fauna. The land use capacity map brings this support of indicating the most appropriate uses for the specifics of the relief. In the two faxinals it was still possible to unite these interpretative technical characteristics with the vernacular (the ethnoknowledges) knowledge of the faxinalense farmers.