“Tem uma estrada no caminho”: ciência e conservação na Reserva Biológica de Sooretama, uma unidade de conservação de proteção integral dividida pela BR-101, no norte do ES

Abstract

The northern region of the Espírito Santo state houses the Complexo Florestal LinharesSooretama, and this area represents the largest remnant of protected Atlantic Forest in the state and is composed mainly of two areas, Reserva Biológica Sooretama and Reserva Natural Vale. However, although the first is listed as an integral protection conservation unit by a regulation that prohibits anthropic changes within the protected area, the federal BR-101 highway cuts the territory of the Compexo Florestal from one end to the other, about 23 km, and generates distinct negative impacts for the protected species according to experts. This highway is one of the busiest in the country and is in the middle of a process of extension that will double the highway width. In this conflict between the existence of the reserve and the presence of the road, there are groups of biologists and ecologists who research the conservation of threatened natural species. Thus, this paper aims to describe and analyze the relationship between three research groups that work for the conservation of endangered animal species in the region (Harpia, Felinos and Pró-Tapir projects) and the effects of the road. This is being done based on the analysis of their techno-scientific research, which aims at monitoring and conserving the environment of the Complexo, and taking into account that these relationships involve human agency, by the researchers and their collaborators, and nonhuman agency, by the forest beings. My research was based on bibliographic review of pertinent social science literature, analysis of articles in conservation biology and other documents related to the Complexo Florestal, audiovisual materials related to public lectures given by these researchers and interviews with scientists and residents of the study region. Keywords: Human-non human relations; tecnoscience; enviromental conflicts.