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RPPN Cerrado Guarantees Definitive Protection to Cachoeira do Label and Strengthens Environmental Conservation in Chapada dos Veadeiros.
The Cachoeira do Label, located in São João d’Aliança (GO), has officially joined the national system of protected areas by receiving the title of RPPN Cerrado, ensuring the perpetual preservation of 50.5 hectares in the heart of Chapada dos Veadeiros.
Thus, the measure, recognized by a federal decree published at the end of January, strengthens environmental conservation, protects strategic springs, and increases the defense of biodiversity in the Cerrado, one of the most threatened biomes in the country.
The recognition was granted by ICMBio through Ordinance No. 484, published in the Official Gazette of the Union on January 29.
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With earth, bamboo, straw, and lime mortar, a specialist builds a house for just over $460 and draws attention for its cost being much lower than traditional construction.
The area is now called Reserva Bellatrix and houses the tallest waterfall in Goiás, at 187 meters high.
Thus, the initiative came from the landowner, tourism expert and agroecologist Marcello Clacino, who sought to formalize protection since acquiring the property in 2017.
RPPN Cerrado Guarantees Definitive Protection to Cachoeira do Label
Unlike public parks, RPPN Cerrado maintains private ownership of the land but imposes a permanent commitment to conservation.
Thus, even in case of sale or inheritance, the area cannot be designated for activities such as agriculture, mining, or deforestation.
According to Marcello Clacino, the process was marked by land tenure challenges.
“Since we acquired the property in 2017, this was the main objective.
The main challenge was overcoming land regularization, as there are several overlapping title conflicts, a serious problem in Goiás.
There are many pressures from large landowners who do not respect squatters and simpler people. So sometimes they bypass some processes, and we faced this issue.
Justice is slow and has structural operational problems in this type of case. Having overcome this stage, the RPPN registration proceeded easily,” he states.
In addition to environmental protection, the model offers benefits such as exemption from the Rural Land Tax (ITR), priority access to environmental funds, and support from inspection agencies against fires and invasions.
Chapada dos Veadeiros Gains Strengthening in Environmental Conservation
Thus, the creation of Reserva Bellatrix expands the mosaic of protected areas in Chapada dos Veadeiros, recognized as a Natural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. For Clacino, the titling strengthens this international seal.
“I feel proud to say that we are indeed integrated into the Natural Heritage of Humanity.
As an RPPN, we can affirm that we contribute to maintaining and strengthening this distinction for areas with biological or geological formations of exceptional universal value.
Being a global quality seal generates various direct and indirect economic benefits for the region and the country,” he emphasizes.
Thus, Cachoeira do Label has become one of the main ecotourism destinations in northeastern Goiás in recent years, attracting visitors interested in preserved nature, trails, and community-based tourism.
Cerrado Biodiversity Protected Beyond the Limits of the Reserve
The positive impact of the new RPPN Cerrado is also felt in the surrounding area.
For entrepreneur and environmentalist Silvia Mesquita, a resident of the Paranã Valley region, the reserve increases collective environmental security.
“Beyond Reserva Bellatrix, we still have many well-preserved private areas in the surroundings.
Having an RPPN as a neighbor offers protection for all of us who suffer from the threat of fires each dry season.
It also serves as an incentive for more properties to adopt the RPPN model,” she states.
According to her, the experience of Cachoeira do Label can encourage other communities to formalize preserved areas and strengthen ecological connectivity.
Private Reserves Gain Prominence in Chapada dos Veadeiros
Currently, Chapada dos Veadeiros encompasses about 273,000 hectares of protected areas.
Of this total, approximately 27,000 hectares correspond to RPPNs, which serve as ecological corridors complementary to the National Park.
Among the pioneers of private conservation is journalist Cid Queiroz, responsible for three RPPNs totaling about 2,000 hectares.
“São João d’Aliança is very blessed as it is a stage for preservation and a thriving productive sector.
I’ve always defended the importance of this dialogue. If there is no dialogue, the Cerrado will disappear, and the productive sector itself will be harmed,” he warns.
Environmental Conservation Depends on Economic Incentives
A historical partner in the creation of private reserves, Funatura advocates for an expansion of financial incentives.
For Pedro Bruzzi, executive superintendent of the entity, mechanisms like Payment for Environmental Services (PES) are essential.
“We need to make access to environmental credits even easier so that families feel encouraged to invest in RPPNs.
It is not a simple decision to allocate the property to conservation,” he states.
“For almost four decades, Funatura has been working to strengthen private conservation, especially in the Cerrado, where these areas play a strategic role in protecting biodiversity, water, and regulating the climate,” he adds.
RPPNs Grow in Brazil and Strengthen Cerrado Biodiversity
Brazil currently has over 1,900 RPPNs, protecting around 837,000 hectares. Although the Atlantic Forest has the highest number of reserves, the Cerrado is among the most benefited biomes in protected area by private initiatives.
According to ICMBio President Mauro Pires, the model is essential. “RPPNs are conservation units that arise from a voluntary act of great responsibility: to protect areas, permanently, a natural heritage that is also of public interest.”
With the new titling, Cachoeira do Label consolidates itself not only as a landscape symbol but as a national reference in environmental conservation and protection of Cerrado biodiversity.
See more at: Cachoeira do Label Receives Title of RPPN and Expands Protection of the Cerrado
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