The Serra do Mar Environmental Protection Area ( pt, Área de Proteção Ambiental Serra do Mar) is an environmental protection area in the state of

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

, Brazil. It controls land use in an extensive area of Atlantic Forest in the

Serra do Mar The Serra do Mar (, Portuguese for ''Sea's Ridge'' or ''Sea Ridge'') is a 1,500 km long system of mountain ranges and escarpments in Southeastern Brazil. Geography The Serra do Mar runs parallel to the Atlantic Ocean coast from the state ...

range.

Location

The Serra do Mar Environmental Protection Area is divided between the municipalities of

Capão Bonito Capão Bonito is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 47,118 (2020 est.) in an area of 1640 km². The elevation is 705 m. The municipality contains part of the Carlos Botelho State Park, created in 1982. It con ...

(5.23%),

Eldorado El Dorado (, ; Spanish for "the golden"), originally ''El Hombre Dorado'' ("The Golden Man") or ''El Rey Dorado'' ("The Golden King"), was the term used by the Spanish in the 16th century to describe a mythical tribal chief (''zipa'') or king o ...

(18.97%), Guapiara (0.08%),

Ibiúna Ibiúna is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Sorocaba The Metropolitan Region of Sorocaba ( pt, Região Metropolitana de Sorocaba) is an administrative division of the state of São Paulo ...

(0.48%),

Iporanga Iporanga is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 4,199 (2020 est.) in an area of 1152 km². The elevation is 81 m. Iporanga contains parts of the Alto Ribeira and Baixo Ribeira sub-basins of the Ribeira de Iguape ...

(5.63%), Juquiá (16.76%),

Juquitiba Juquitiba is a suburban municipality in the southeastern part of the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo. The population is 31,646 (2020 est.) in an area of 522.17 km². This name comes from the Tupi l ...

(2.4%), Miracatu (16.55%), Pedro de Toledo (2.43%),

Ribeirão Grande Ribeirão Grande is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 7,679 (2020 est.) in an area of 333 km2. The elevation is 690 m. The municipality contains part of the Serra do Mar Environmental Protection Area, cr ...

(2.51%), Sete Barras (15.59%) and Tapiraí (13.38%) in the state of São Paulo. It has an area of . It is in the south of the state, and covers part of the

Ribeira de Iguape River The Ribeira de Iguape River ( pt, Rio Ribeira de Iguape), or simply the Ribeira River ( pt, Rio Ribeira), is a river of Paraná and São Paulo states in southeastern Brazil. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Iguape. The river is home to sever ...

basin. It provides the main link between the

Serra do Mar State Park The Serra do Mar State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual da Serra do Mar) is a state park in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It covers of the Serra do Mar mountain range, and is one of the largest remaining areas of continuous Atlantic Forest. The State ...

and the other conservation units in the Vale do Ribeira. The APA is part of the Atlantic Forest Biosphere Reserve, recognized by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

as the first such reserve in Brazil and one of the largest in the world to cover a forest area.

History

The Serra do Mar Environmental Protection Area was created by SP governor Franco Montoro by decree 22.717 of 21 September 1984, protecting the slopes of the Serra de Paranapiacaba and adjoining region. It excluded the

Alto Ribeira Tourist State Park The Alto Ribeira Touristic State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual Turístico do Alto Ribeira) is a state park is the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It protects a mountainous area of Atlantic Forest and is known for its many caves. Location The Alto Ribe ...

and the

Jacupiranga State Park The Jacupiranga State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual de Jacupiranga) was a state park in São Paulo, Brazil. It covered a large, mountainous region that included untouched Atlantic Forest and land occupied by traditional communities. When the park was ...

from the Serra do Mar APA. Decree 43.651 of 26 September 1998 stated that the APA did not include land recognized as the property of the remnants of

quilombo A ''quilombo'' (; from the Kimbundu word , ) is a Brazilian hinterland settlement founded by people of African origin, and others sometimes called Carabali. Most of the inhabitants of quilombos, called quilombolas, were maroons, a term for es ...

communities. The main objective is to protect a part of the

that is covered by an extensive area of Atlantic Forest, one of the best-preserved areas of the center-south region of Brazil, with great diversity of fauna and flora including endemic and endangered species. Law 10.850 of 6 July 2001 altered the boundaries of the Jacupiranga State Park to exclude the

quilombola A ''quilombola'' () is an Afro-Brazilian resident of '' quilombo'' settlements first established by escaped slaves in Brazil. They are the descendants of Afro-Brazilian slaves who escaped from slave plantations that existed in Brazil until ab ...

communities of Nhunguara, Sapatu and André Lopes, and the

Intervales State Park The Intervales State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual Intervales) is a State park (Brazil), state park in the state of São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Brazil. It protects an area of Atlantic Forest, including parts of the Serra de Paranapiacaba and the R ...

to exclude the quilombola communities of Pilões, Maria Rosa, São Pedro, Ivaporunduva and Pedro Cubas. These communities were included in the Serra do Mar APA. Law 12.810 of 21 February 2008 altered the boundaries of the Jacupiranga State Park, conservation units and

Jacupiranga Mosaic The Jacupiranga Mosaic ( pt, Mosaico do Jacupiranga) is a protected area mosaic of 14 units, located in the Atlantic Forest biome within the state of São Paulo of southeastern Brazil. It is centered on the former Jacupiranga State Park. Histor ...

. The quilombola communities that had formerly been in the Intervales State Park were made part of the Quilombos do Médio Ribeira Environmental Protection Area. São Paulo state decree 58.148 of 21 June 2012 created the Paranapiacaba Conservation Units Mosaic, including the

Carlos Botelho State Park The Carlos Botelho State Park ( pt, Parque Estadual Carlos Botelho) is a state park is the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It protects a mountainous area of Atlantic Forest. The park contains more than half of Brazil's remaining population of endanger ...

, Xitué Ecological Station, Nascentes do Paranapanema State Park and the portion of the Serra do Mar Environmental Protection Area in the municipalities of

, Sete Barras, Tapiraí, Juquiá,

and

. The purpose was to promote integrated and participatory management of the conservation units, and to seek to guarantee conservation of the areas covered.

Notes

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Serra do Mar Environmental Protection Area Environmental protection areas of Brazil Protected areas established in 1984 1984 establishments in Brazil Protected areas of São Paulo (state)