EVALUATION OF THE SUSTAINABILITY OF THE PRETO RIVER WATERSHED BASED ON ECOSYSTEM SERVICE INDICATORS

The hydrographic watershed of the Preto River is located in the Cerrado biome, which is crucial for the country's biodiversity and water resources. Due to the expansion of agribusiness, especially monoculture and pasture, the region has experienced an elevated level of deforestation and changes in land use and land cover. The work aims to generate indicators of ecosystem services to assess the sustainability of the Preto River watershed. For evaluation, five indicators were used -erosion control, aquifer recharge potential, aquifer contamination, food production, and biodiversity maintenance -to create maps, using ArcGIS software, illustrating changes in ecosystem services in the Preto River watershed in the years 1953, 1994, and 2019. The results show that between 1953 and 2019, indicators for aquifer recharge, aquifer contamination, soil erosion, and biodiversity maintenance deteriorated, while the food production indicator showed positive results. These findings highlight a significant decrease in ecosystem services, which may adversely affect agricultural production and sustainable development. Therefore, it is essential to promote responsible land use to mitigate environmental problems and ensure the region's sustainable development.