Tracking and Analysis of Socio-Environmental Impacts of Informal Road Building in the Amazon Borderlands

Keywords: Amazonia, borderlands, roads, GIS, Peru, Brazil
Session Type: Virtual Poster Abstract
Day: Friday
Session Start / End Time: 2/25/2022 03:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/25/2022 05:00 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 39

Abstract

Informal road building in the Amazon borderlands is increasing at a rapid rate despite research suggesting harmful social and environmental consequences. Colonists and logging companies are building informal roads, without government process, deeper into the Amazon rainforest to reach coveted timber and land for agriculture. Previous research suggests that informal road development fragments forests, causes pollution to waterways, and increases temperatures, among other impacts. Amazonian road expansion also creates a progressive feedback loop. Unregulated logging roads and agricultural paths can be formalized through paving and government recognition, which begets further expansion of informal roads. Building off of previously published roads datasets, this research records the growth of informal road networks using remote sensing and GIS analysis of the borderlands shared by Acre, Brazil and Ucayali, Peru. The researchers employed a standardized digitization process on ArcGIS Pro with Planet satellite imagery. GIS analysis measured the intersection of informal roads with protected areas, Indigenous territories, mining operations, and petroleum operations. This research tracks the development of informal roads in forested areas to guide future analysis of road evolution and associated socio-environmental consequences.