Cerrado fires and the vulnerability in rural settlements

the example of Rio Paraíso settlement in Jataí-GO

Abstract

The fires in Brazil, in 2019, took on unprecedented proportions. The fire outbreaks were identified in several biomes in the country. Although there may be natural Cerrado fires,  fact that can contribute to the renewal of some plants, those that are caused result in great damage to the environment and to the productive areas, bringing about incalculable losses. In this article, it is evaluated, in a gerenal perspective, the actions of the fire in the Cerrado and, in a specific way, the event (fire) that took place in Rio Paraíso settlement, Jataí-GO, in 2019. For this analysis, the understanding of spatial vulnerability was taken as a reference, comprehending that specialized production denies the characteristics of the small property, characterized by polyculture and diversified animal husbandry. Thus, the specialization of production, as it occurs in Rio Paraíso Settlement, where soybean and corn monocultures predominate, makes producers more vulnerable, such as the one that resulted in the fires that reached many producers in the settlement in 2019. In a preliminary survey it can be seen that the recovery of losses will take some years, perhaps there will be recovery. The data described in this article were obtained through information from residents of the settlement and the Fire Department, from newspaper articles that registered the event and from interviews with employees of COPARPA Cooperative (present in the settlement) in the city of Jataí.

Keyword: Cerrado fires. Land Settlement. Vulnerability. Biodiesel. Family rural worker.