LUPIS Project (EU 2009-2012)

Cattle ranching and soybean farms in Southern Amazonia

The video show deforested areas of Mato Grosso State in Southern Amazonia (Brazil).  Once dense forests, now these areas are occupied by ranchers and soybean farms for the global commodities market. Source: Nathan Debortoli

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Project description

LUPIS is an EU funded project run by 16 institutes in 13 countries. The project developed  integrated assessment tools for sustainable development for application by scientists in a selected number of developing countries, and the tools developed in the EU 6th framework projects of SENSOR and SEAMLESS were used both as building blocks in and guidelines for the project.
Main goals of the LUPIS project:
• Development of tools that are both generic and flexible, and that can be applied to a range of conditions in developing countries to perform ex-ante policy assessments
• Results will be compatible with the Group on Earth Observations (GEO) initiative on data management to provide harmonised databases and services to be integrated in the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS)
• Through the predominant involvement of scientists from developing countries, use will be made of the tools developed by the SENSOR and SEAMLESS projects and adjusted to fit into the conditions in developing countries
• This effort will enable improved capacity for analysis of the impacts of land use policies on sustainable development, where the focus will specifically be on bio-diversity, public goods and services.

Brazil case study

  • The land use problem: The issue is linked to the planned paving of highway BR-163 road linking Cuiabá to Santarém in Amazonia. The planned paving has caused intense migration into the area, causing and grabbing and land speculation, and intensifying social conflicts. This area in the Amazonia is a melting pot of social gropus and interests which expresses the complex process of the occupation of the rain forest without a previous long term plan.The Amazon is further the most threatened region by deforestation and fires in Brazil, causing loss of biodiversity and the biggest source of greenhouse gas emission in the country. Much of the conflicts have arisen mainly due to: poor law enforcements, incipient inspections and the remoteness of the area from the main urban areas of Brazil.
  • The case study area: BR-163 is a federal highway of 1.780 km that crosses part of the states of Mato Grosso and Pará. It was built in 1974 and opened for the traffic in all its extension in 1976. 956km are still not paved and the overall conditions are very bad. It is in many cases the only means of communication for the local population.
  • Policies for assessment: The most relevant public policies that affect Amazonia can be grouped as follows: protected lands (conservation and sustainable use areas, and indigenous lands); colonization and land reform programs; and Infrastructure (road-building/paving, and hydroelectric power plants). Policies to develop and manage the rural area will be included as drivers in the study.
  • Knowledge to be gained: The project aims to explore synergies between economic growth and environmental conservation in the region.

Extract from LUPIS

Brazilian team LUPIS Project

  • Marcel Bursztyn
  • Saulo Rodrigues-Filho
  • Nathan Debortoli
  • Diego Pereira Lindoso
  • Catherine Gucciardi
  • Gabriela Litre

Final reports and publications

  1. Regional Policy Brief for the Latin America Case study: regional_policybrief_brazil
  2. RODRIGUES-FILHO, SAULO ; VERBURG, RENÉ ; Bursztyn, Marcel ; LINDOSO, DIEGO ; DEBORTOLI, N.; VILHENA, ANDRÉA M.G. (2015) Election-driven weakening of deforestation control in the Brazilian Amazon. Land Use Policy, v. 43, p. 111-118.  Read
  3. VERBURG, R. ; RODRIGUES FILHO, S. ; LINDOSO, D. P. ; DEBORTOLI, N. ; BURSZTYN, M. (2014) . The impact of commodity price and conservation policy scenarios on deforestation and agricultural land use in a frontier area within the Amazon. Land Use Policy, v. 37, p. 14-26. Read
  4. VERBURG, R. ; RODRIGUES FILHO, S. ; DEBORTOLI, N. ; LINDOSO, D. P. ; NESHEIM, I. ; BURSZTYN, M. (2014) . Evaluating sustainability options in an agricultural frontier of the Amazon using multi-criteria analysis. Land Use Policy, v. 37, p. 27-39. Read
  5. VERBURG, R. ; LINDOSO, D. P. ; DEBORTOLI, N. ; RODRIGUES FILHO, S. (2011). Towards a low carbon economy in the Amazon: the role of land-use policies. Sustentabilidade em Debate, v. 2, p. 83-96. Read
  6. VERBURG, R. ; CHEN, L. ; RODRIGUES FILHO, S. ; CISSE, Y. ; KEITA, B. ; LINDOSO, D. P. ; TRAORE, M. D. ; GUCCIARDI, C. ; DIARRA, A. T. ; DEBORTOLI, N. (2009) . Climate Change in Mali and Brazil. 1. ed. The Hague: LEI Wageningen UR. v. 1. 108p . Read
  7. RODRIGUES FILHO, S. ; BURSZTYN, M. ; LINDOSO, D. P. ; DEBORTOLI, N. ; NESHEIM, I. ; VERBURG, R. (2012). Road Development and Deforestation in Amazonia, Brazil. In: Desmond McNeill (Editor); Ingrid Nesheim (Editor); Floor Brouwer (Editor). (Org.). Land Use Policies for Sustainable Development: Exploring Integrated Assessment Approaches. 1ed.: Edward Elgar Pub, v. 1, p. 191-218. Read
  8. LINDOSO, D. P. ; DEBORTOLI, N. ; TANIMOTO, A. (2008). As Emissões Antropogênicas Pré-Revolução Industrial Afetando O Clima Do Planeta. In: IV ENANPPAS Encontro Nacional da Anppas – Meio Ambiente e Sociedade, 2008, Brasília. Grupo Temático I, 2008. Read
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