Efeito da concentração da soja e algodão na produtividade de culturas essencialmente dependentes da polinização animal no centro-oeste brasileiro

Abstract

According to FAO’s data (2004) approximately 73% of agricultural species cultivated worldwide are pollinated by bees. However, a steady decline in the population of these pollinators has been observed in several countries and the indiscriminate use of pesticides has been pointed out as a major factor in this process. This master teses aimed to analyze the effect of the locational presence of soybean and cotton crops which use pesticides that are harmful to pollinators on the productivity of crops sensitive to pollination in central-western Brazil (a region that has significant productivity for agribusiness in Brazil). For this, a quantitative approach was adopted using statistical tools especially regression analysis through the development of an empirical model in order to test the hypothesis that municipalities that have not planted soybeans and/or cotton have higher productivity of pollinated crops than in municipalities that have planted soybeans and/or cotton, as well as to verify if the presence of forest remnants (habitat of native bees) favor the ecosystem service of pollination contributing to the productivity of crops essentially dependent on this service. The results suggest that the increase in the cultivation of Soy and Cotton in the Brazilian Midwest does not interfere in the productivity per hectare of the crops analyzed.