Gestão de serviços dos ecossistemas em bacias hidrográficas

Os serviços de ecossistemas referem-se a uma dimensão normalmente menosprezada das actividades agrícolas e florestais. Com efeito, estas actividades, para além dos produtos transaccionáveis, produzem, ou contribuem para a produção de serviços não transaccionáveis que importa reconhecer, avaliar e, progressivamente, remunerar. Esta remuneração é da maior importância no actual contexto de desvalorização dos rendimentos associados a essas actividades na maior parte dos espaços anteriormente a elas dedicados, desvalorização que vem pondo progressivamente em risco esses espaços multifuncionais e, particularmente, as suas contribuições para as funções económicas e sociais dos restantes espaços de uso, com relevo para os espaços de produção, urbanização e de serviços. Com efeito, estes últimos, não poderão ser viáveis sem as funções de produção e regulação que são garantidas pelos espaços hoje classificados como marginais e pelas actividades agrícolas e florestais de rentabilidade insuficiente, mas que garantem funções de produção e regulação dos sistemas hidrológicos (através, por exemplo, da infiltração ou da regularização do escoamento) ou de protecção contra os fenómenos erosivos e a perda de solo. Estas funções são hoje reconhecidas por inúmeros instrumentos legais e acordos internacionais (caso da Directiva Quadro da Água, da proposta de Directiva Quadro para a Protecção do Solo (COM(2006) 232 e a recente declaração do Conselho da União Europeia sobre a Protecção dos recursos hídricos e a gestão integrada sustentável da água na União Europeia (Junho de 2011). Interessa agora desenvolver os mecanismos quer para a sua gestão integrada, quer para a sua efectiva e adequada remuneração

Aroma precursors of grapes: contribution of variety and vineyard traning system to port wine aroma

In order to evaluate the influence of the vine training system in the composition in terpenes, norisoprenoids and their precursors (carotenoids and glycosidic molecules), these compounds were quantified in grapes and Port wines belonging to two varieties: Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca from Douro Region. The double cordon LYS 2/3 system was compared with the traditional method, the vertical shoot positioning VSP system. Touriga Nacional grapes and wines have higher contents in carotenoids, free and glycosylated fractions of terpenic and norisoprenoids compounds than Touriga Franca. In general, LYS 2/3 training system produced grapes and wines with high content in glycosylated fractions of terpenes and nor-isoprenoids, being more appropriate to the production of Port wines, which are submitted to an aging process

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in Assessing Dental Health

The present study investigated the distribution profile of dental caries and its association with areas of social deprivation at the individual and contextual level. The cluster sample consisted of 1,002 12-year-old schoolchildren from Piracicaba, SP, Brazil. The DMFT Index was used for dental caries and the Care Index was used to determine access to dental services. On the individual level, variables were associated with a better oral status. On the contextual level, areas were not associated with oral status. However, maps enabled determining that the central districts have better social and oral conditions than the deprived outlying districts

Coverage of high biomass forests by the ESA BIOMASS mission under defense restrictions

The magnitude of the global terrestrial carbon pool and related fluxes to and from the atmosphere are still poorly known. The European Space Agency P-band radar BIOMASS mission will help to reduce this uncertainty by providing unprecedented information on the distribution of forest above-ground biomass (AGB), particularly in the tropics where the gaps are greatest and knowledge is most needed. Mission selection was made in full knowledge of coverage restrictions over Europe, North and Central America imposed by the US Department of Defense Space Objects Tracking Radar (SOTR) stations. Under these restrictions, only 3% of AGB carbon stock coverage is lost in the tropical forest biome, with this biome representing 66% of global AGB carbon stocks in 2005. The loss is more significant in the temperate (72%), boreal (37%) and subtropical (29%) biomes, with these accounting for approximately 12%, 15% and 7%, respectively, of the global forest AGB carbon stocks. In terms of global carbon cycle modelling, there is minimal impact in areas of high AGB density, since mainly lower biomass forests in cooler climates are affected. In addition, most areas affected by the SOTR stations are located in industrialized countries with well-developed national forest inventories, so that extensive information on AGB is already available. Hence the main scientific objectives of the BIOMASS mission are not seriously compromised. Furthermore, several space sensors that can estimate AGB in lower biomass forests are in orbit or planned for launch between now and the launch of BIOMASS in 2021, which will help to fill the gaps in mission coverage