Sustainable assessment of RIDE-DF basins based on ecosystem services indicators

Abstract

This paper assesses the sustainability of the Integrated Development Region of the Federal District and Surrounding Areas (RIDE-DF, >46,000 km², 32 municipalities) through key ecosystem service indicators. Using quantitative spatial modeling based on geoprocessing, the study evaluates erosion potential (USLE), aquifer recharge (curve-number method), aquifer contamination vulnerability (adapted DRASTIC), and biodiversity maintenance in the Paraná, São Francisco, and Tocantins-Araguaia basins between 1985 and 2020. Results show non-homogeneous trends: in the Paraná basin, which concentrates the Federal District's urban expansion, areas with low soil loss declined by 12%, high-contamination areas increased by 8%, and high biodiversity potential areas fell by 20%; in the São Francisco basin, the area exposed to high contamination doubled; the Tocantins-Araguaia basin improved in soil loss and recharge but lost biodiversity potential. Native vegetation loss emerges as the central driver of ecosystem service degradation, supporting future public planning, management, and monitoring policies in the RIDE-DF region.