2 – Environmental characteristics

The Federal District is located in the central portion of the Brasilia Folds and Thrusts Zone. Its regional geological context is constituted by four distinct lithological sets: Canastra and Paranoá groups (the Meso-Neoproterozoic Age) and the Araxá and Bambuí groups (the Neoprotereozoic Age). Paranoá Group: covers about 65% of the Federal District and is composed of the following rocks: Fine Conglomerate Quartzite, Metasiltstone, Slates, Sandy Metaritmite, Medium Quartzite, Clay Metaritmite and a unit of Psamo-pelito-carbonate. Canastra Group: equivalent to 15% of the area of the Federal District, distributed through the vales of the São Bartolomeu and Maranhão rivers, essentially constituted by phyllites and, subordinately, by lenticular bodies of marble and quartzites. Bambuí Group: is distributed over about 15% of the Federal District, being found the northern area, and east along the Preto River valley. The main rocks in this group are laminated siltstone, clay siltstone and arkose. Araxá Group: occupies […]
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The Federal District is situated in the Hydrogeological Province of the Central Shield, where there are two large types of aquifers: the Porous Aquifer Dominion and the Fractured Aquifer Dominion. Porous Dominion: water occupies the pores between the minerals that constitute the body of rock. This dominion is composed of soils and rocks that are in the process of alteration. Due to its thickness and hydraulic conductivity, these aquifers can be classified as P1, P2, P3 and P4. The P1, P2, P3 systems are characterized by larger thicknesses (>5 m) and a respectively high, medium and low hydraulic conductivity. The P4 system is characterized by small thickness (
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The Federal District is situated on a regional summit of the Central Plain, which is the remains of levelings resulting from the South American erosion cycles that developed between the Lower Tertiary and the Middle and Upper Tertiary. The relief of the Federal District is characterized by the standard plain to softly undulated, inclined reliefs that extend from the base of the plateaus and the residual hills in direction of the valleys, and dissected reliefs along the Paranoá, São Bartolomeu, Preto, Maranhão and Descoberto rivers. Five large geomorphological compartments can be identified in the Federal District: High Plan: plain and softly undulated relief, with altitudes above 1,100 meters and a declivity of less than 10%. These are regions covered with latosols and have low drainage density. Intermediate Plan: softly undulated relief, differing from the previous in that it presents a declivity of less than 12% and an altitude of between […]
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The soils in the Federal District are relatively plan, have different deepness, textures, porosities and different levels of fertility. They present different colors, which go from red hues to gray and black. From the agricultural point of view, the soils in the Federal District are not fertile, being necessary to correct the soil for cultivation. Ferralsols and cambisols predominate. Ferralsols compose about 60% of the territory, and are red ferralsols (44%) and red-yellow ferralsols (16%). These soils are red in color, highly weathered, very deep, well drained, distrophic, acidic and have a clay content varying between 15 and 80%. They occur in areas with a plan topography and soft undulation. Cambisols compose 31% of the area of the Federal District. They are little developed, with easily weathered minerals. They are associated with the more active relief (undulated and heavily undulated). Generally, they are shallow, dystrophic soils with a texture ranging […]
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The Federal District is situated on high land, which serves as a watershed for water to flow to three important hydrographic basins in Brazil: the Paraná Basin, the São Francisco Basin and the Tocantins Basin. Being that the Federal District is an important region of fountainheads with a perennial flow of water, its hydrography is a gigantic lacy from which almost ten billion cubic meters of water flow annually. In the last decades, due to heavy demographic growth and the increase of economic activities, increased pressure has been placed on water resources, placing its maintenance and sustainability at risk. The Federal District is composed of seven hydrographic basins: Descoberto River Basin: formed by the Descoberto River, which flows through the Federal District at the extreme west of the territory and separates it from the state of Goiás. Descoberto Lake, formed by damming the Descoberto River, is responsible for supplying water […]
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According to the Köppen climate classification, the climate in the Federal District is tropical, with a concentration of precipitation in the summer. The following climactic types can be seen: Tropical savannah climate with dry winter (Aw): The temperature, for the coldest month, is above 18°C. This is seen in areas with spot elevations below 1,000 meters. Humid subtropical climate with dry winter and hot summer (Cwa): The temperature for the coldest month is less than 18°C, with an average of above 22°C for the warmest month. This covers areas with spot elevations of between 1,000 and 1,200 meters. Humid subtropical climate with dry winter and temperate summer (Cwb): The temperature, for the coldest month, is less than 18°C, with an average of less than 22°C in the warmest month. This covers areas with spot elevations over 1,200 meters. The average annual temperatures vary from between 19°C and 23°C. The warmest […]
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The Federal District is completely within the Cerrado biome. This is the second largest biome in South America, covering more than 200 million hectares, about 22% of the Brazilian territory. Its continuous area extends into the states of Goiás, Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Bahia, Maranhão, Piauí, Rondônia, Paraná, São Paulo and the Federal District, besides enclaves in Amapá, Roraima and Amazonas. The Cerrado is known as “the water cradle of Brazil” since it covers zones in the plane. The region has many fountainheads and important areas of water replenishment that contribute to a large part of Brazil’s basins. It is known as the savannah richest in biodiversity on the planet, a fact that, associated with the high risk of losing the habitat, has led to the biome being considered a world hotspot for biodiversity conservation. The Cerrado has gone through intense transformations in the last […]
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The Cerrado presents itself as a vegetation mosaic composed of 11 types of vegetation, conforming to: Forest Savannas that include the types of vegetation that cover the tree species of a continuous canopy formation. These include riparian and gallery forest, which are found near flowing water, dry forest and Cerradão, which occur between the well drained river areas, but that are not associated with the flowing waters. Wooded Savannas are composed of four main types, Cerrado Stricto Sensu, cerrado park, palms and veredas. The Cerrado Stricto Sensu is characterized by the presence of brush with trees randomly distributed, in different densities, without the formation of a continuous cover. In the Cerrado Park, the occurrence of trees is concentrated in specific land areas. In the Palm, there is the marked presence of some species of palm, occurring both in well drained as well as in not well drained areas. The Veredas […]
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The Brazilian Cerrado is recognized as the richest savannah in the world. It harbors 12,385 cataloged species, of which about 4,000 are endemic. More than 220 species have medicinal uses and more than 416 can be used in soil recovery, such as wind barriers, protection against erosion or to create habitats for natural plague predators. More than 10 types of consumable fruits are regularly consumed by the local population and sold in urban centers, such as Pequi (Caryocar brasiliense), Buriti (Mauritia flexuosa), Mangaba (Hancornia speciosa), Cagaita (Eugenia dysenterica), Bacupari (Salacia crassifolia), Cajuzinho do Cerrado (Anacardium humile), Araticum (Annona crassifolia) and the seeds of the Barú (Dipteryx alata). Among the flora species, 637 are threatened with extinction.
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The Cerrado fauna is quite rich, totalizing about 250 species of mammals, 850 species of birds, 1,300 species of reptiles, 200 species of amphibians, and 90 thousand species of insects. Among the amphibians and reptiles, it is estimated that, respectively, 28% and 17% are endemic. Also, the Cerrado is a refuge for 13% of the butterflies, 35% of the bees and 23% of the termites in the tropics. Among the species cited, at least 266 are in danger of extinction.
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Despite its recognized importance, among all the world hotspots for biodiversity conservation, the Cerrado is that which has the lowest percentage of areas under complete protection. Only 8% of its territory is legally protected by conservation units. Among the federal units, the Federal District has the greatest percentage of protected land. Over 90% of its area is under regulation by some conservation unit. There are 36 conservation units, with 12 under complete protection and 24 under sustainable use. There are also 72 parks destined for leisure and ecological observation and three areas under special protection, among which are the Zoological Garden, the Botanical Garden and the Embrapa Cerrados Reserve. Besides the conservation units, there are other protected areas, such as areas under permanent conservation – APP, around flowing and bodies of water, hilltops and sides, and legal reserve areas on private property. The Federal District is a member of the […]
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