WWF Brazil and REGUA: partnership that continues to bear fruit

Starting in 2021, the partnership between WWF Brazil and REGUA continues to be very successful. In this new phase, 25 hectares of forest were planted at REGUA's property "Solar da REGUA", an area acquired with the support of Saving Nature and friends.

Aline Damasceno (Forestry Engineer), Raquel Locke (Vice-President of REGUA) and Alexander Copello (Project Manager) - Photo: Etinho Miranda

Around 40 thousand seedlings of native Atlantic Forest species were planted in this area.

Aline Damasceno - Project Forestry Engineer - Photo: Etinho Miranda

“It hasn’t been a year since we started planting and we already have specimens of this size,” said Aline Damasceno de Azevedo, REGUA’s forestry engineer, showing a Guapuruvu tree measuring more than two meters in height.

These first species have their seeds propagated by the wind, as the animals have not yet arrived. “We expect the forest to be colonized first by birds, and then small mammals, such as rodents. As the forest area develops, it is expected that larger animals will also appear, such as the tapirs themselves, which were reintroduced by REFAUNA project under the auspices of REGUA and Project Guapiaçu. Different forest restoration techniques were used in this area, including native Atlantic Forest sapling planting, supplementary planting, and seeding dispersal (the latter was done in partnership with the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro - UFRRJ).

ESSENTIAL. Considering the partnership between WWF Brazil and REGUA, key to the fullfilement of REGUA's mission which is to recover and protect the biodiversity of the Guapiaçu River Basin, Alexander Copello, consultant who manages the project, spoke about how the forest restoration work enables the creation of forest corridors, known as ecological corridors, a strategy to rescue the biodiversity of a given degraded region.

- These partnerships are essential, from acquiring the area to connecting forest fragments, and creating biodiversity corridors, to then carrying out restoration activities. This demands financial and human resources, which is why partnerships are so important. Specifically here at Solar da REGUA, we have this technical-financial partnership with WWF Brazil, which is essential. Without these partnerships, resources cannot be allocated to carry out the restoration project – declared Alexsander.

WWF BRAZIL Field Team - Photo: Etinho Miranda

LEGACY. Highlighting that the great legacy after the reforestation of the area will be enjoyed by the entire society (with the recharge of the region's water bodies and the guarantee of water supply for human consumption), the manager believes that, given the excellent results achieved, the partnership between WWF Brasil and REGUA has the potential to establish itself for a long time (the current contract ends in March 2025).

- REGUA has 23 years of technical reputation and we have verified, during technical visits from partners, the success of our projects and initiatives. REGUA has achieved this result, and the institution hopes that this partnership will continue to perpetuate its activities - concluded Alexsander.

ECONOMIC IMPACT. The REGUA Solar Farm reforestation project directly employs 10 people, eight of these workers living in the Guapiaçu region, which generates income in the region and the distribution of this income in the local economy. In addition to the other projects carried out by REGUA, the total number of workers in the Reserve reaches 50 people, with the majority being residents of the entity's surroundings.

Article published by Jornal Estado em Notícias