Colonização e meio ambiente: a transformação da paisagem do oeste catarinense (1930 a 1970)

Abstract

In the studies made, the farming practices and interactions between the western population of Santa Catarina and the natural enviroment were analyzed, having as a main objective to discover how it influenced the transformations in the regional landscapes over the colonization process, established, in this research, between 1930 and 1970. The studies were done by the using of the Enviroment History, that intends to understand the interaction between the human being and nature in different politicals, historicals, enviromentals and cultural aspects and contexts. To accomplish it, several documentary sources, offered by the colonizers, logging companies, public agencies, local newspapers’ reports, IBGE data, laws and ordinances, mapping images, photos taken to this research, plus the analysis of oral and bibliographic material about the western side of Santa Catarina. It is possible to realize that the regional colonization model, based on the small property, involved nature appropriation practices that have dramatically changed the enviroment, where the native florest has given place to different uses and occupations of soil. Thus, the interaction between humans and not humans has been changing the regional landscapes. If, on one hand, the transformation was a reflection of the occupation model, the use of the space, and of the interaction of practices and exploration of natural resources, on the other hand, the enviromental aspects of the western of Santa Catarina were highlighted and have contributed and influenced the social and cultural formation.