2012 Annual Report - The Nature Conservancy

NATURE PROTECTS OUR AIR QUALITY
Bazilio Carloto with
his wife, Cirede,
and children Daniel,
Nathalia and Wanessa.
Bazilio Carloto
Paragominas, Brazil
“When I arrived in Paragominas, we used to see a lot of deforestation and
smoke. People didn’t care about the environment 14 or 15 years ago. Before, the
mindset was extraction, extraction and extraction, no matter what. Now, people
know they can’t deforest. The Conservancy had a strong influence on this. The
Conservancy cares about both the environment and farmers.
The part of the forest that we call legal reserve has to generate income, and
there are many ways of doing it. When the forest is enriched, it receives species
that produce fruits, medicines and wood. It doesn’t affect the environment and it
gives the producer another source of income.
São Tomé is the saint who has to see to believe, isn’t he? This pilot project is a
little like São Tomé: You have to show your neighbor for him to believe and do
the same. These properties will be an example, so that other farmers see that it
works—that it’s good for them and for the environment.”
Bazilio Carloto and his family live in the municipality of Paragominas, which became the first
municipality in Brazil to be removed from the government’s “black list” of deforesters in 2009.
Today Carloto’s property is part of a pilot project promoted by the Conservancy and supported by
Fundo Vale and USAID to evaluate the best practices for vegetation enrichment in Paragominas,
helping farmers and ranchers do more with the same amount of cleared land.
12 The Nature Conservancy I nature.org