Percepção de serviços ecossistêmicos por agricultores periurbanos: estudo de caso na Comuna da Terra “Irmã Alberta”, São Paulo, SP

Abstract

Agroecosystems depend and also interfere, positively or negatively, on the different ecosystem services (ES). Understanding its perception is very relevant for the conservation and definition of territorial guidelines, especially in periurban areas that act as buffers between urban and rural zones. The objective of this work was to analyze the perception of ES by farmers located in transition areas between urban and rural zones. The study was conducted in the “Sister Alberta” Commune of the Earth, a pre-settlement established in the capital of São Paulo, with the application of semi-structured interviews with key informants. The most reported ESs were those related to the ecosystem functions of support and culture, and the most cited were “nursery”, “cultural identity”, “food”, “sound regulation”, “aesthetic appreciation” and “air quality”. Sociocultural and spatial context aspects in which they are inserted influenced the perception of ecosystem services. The presence of agroforestry home gardens was the most prominent factor influencing the perception of ecosystem services.