As conflicts related to the water use in Brazil are increasing, the implementation of policies that can mitigate these problems has become crucial. In this context, the concept of Payment for Environmental Services (PES) has been widely accepted and applied around the world and also in Brazil. The municipality of Extrema, in the State of Minas Gerais, was the first in Brazil to implement a PES program, known as “Conservador das Águas”. This study aimed to evaluate soil losses in […]

The final disposal of sewage sludge is a growing concern worldwide as it has impacts on the water availability and quality for consumption, and economic activities. The Companhia de Saneamento Ambiental do Distrito Federal (CAESB) processes 400 t of biosolids a day that is rich in mineral nutrients and organic matter. Despite the lack of local agronomic criteria for use, biosolids has found a growing demand in grain, fruit crops, coffee and pastures cultivation. To evaluate the immediate (first year) […]

The soil erodibility factor (K factor) of the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) refers to the natural soil susceptibility to erosion and represents the quantity of lost soil per rain erosivity unit (R factor), a factor, which is of great importance in conservation management. Using data of soil loss, measured under natural rainfall conditions in collector ponds of superficial runoff, and of natural rainfall erosivity (EI30) in the period from 1989 to 1998 in Lages (SC), the soil erodibility factor […]