MAPEAMENTO POR IMAGENS DE SENSORIAMENTO REMOTO EVIDENCIA O BIOMA PAMPA BRASILEIRO SOB AMEAÇA Remote sensing image mapping evidence Brazilian Pampa biome under threat

Rio Grande do Sul grasslands are formed by natural ecosystems with high species diversity that provide important environmental services, such as water conservation, the availability of pollinators, and provision of genetic resources, besides being a great source forage in southern Brazil. Through the unsupervised classification process of Landsat-7 satellite images, was obtained the land cover pattern present in the investigated biome (brazilian Pampas). The classification method done in nine squares 30x30m pixel radar showed that about 40% of remaining natural vegetation, and of these, 32% of grasslands areas and 08% of forested areas. The total area of water surface was about 09% and anthropogenic (urban and rural areas - including livestock areas, monocultures and intensive agriculture) covered about 51%. These results suggest immediate conservation and restoration activities for maintaining the southern grasslands biodiversity.