Assessment of the environmental quality of the Cachoeirinha-Invernada watershed, Guarulhos municipality (State of São Paulo, Brazil), as an urbanization reflex

Abstract

The urbanization of the southeastern and southern regions of Brazil has been characterized by the lack of geotechnical planning, which has caused a series of natural disasters induced by anthropic interference. The objective of this paper is the environmental quality analysis of the Cachoeirinha Invernada Watershed, located in the city of Guarulhos. For this analysis, a survey of the geological and geomorphological conditions was carried out, an interpretative analysis of the map of land use and occupation and the quality of surface water, a survey of the urban sanitation system, as well as verification of the application of legislation environmental. The results obtained in this study attest that the Cachoeirinha-Invernada Watershed is largely degraded, due to urbanization characterized by high occupation densities in hills and valleys, terrains in which the physical environment is very fragile for such demand. The main evidences of geologic processes correspond to soil degradation by erosion, mass movements and flooding, including siltation of valleys. The occupation of the Permanent Preservation Area takes place on top of the hills, high declivity areas, stream margins and springs. The lack of sanitary sewers linked to the sewer network, the disposal of wastewater directly in streams and ditches, besides the inadequate disposal of solid waste have contributed to the low environmental quality assessed in the Cachoeirinha-Invernada Watershed.