Soil mapping and characterization of land use and occupation in the municipality of Gurupi (TO) and its agricultural potential

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to map the use and occupation of land in the municipality of Gurupi (TO) and its agricultural potential. In this sense, the development of agriculture in this southern region of the state is related to the fact that the state of Tocantins belongs to the MATOPIBA region (Maranhão, Tocantins, Piauí, and Bahia), formed mainly by Cerrado areas, where the agricultural frontier expanded from the 1980s onwards, with lands of more accessible values and which, to date, is an area of agricultural expansion. The objective of this study is to map the soils, characterize, use, and occupation of land in the municipality of Gurupi (TO), to understand the morphological factors that contributed to the formation of several soils, with various characteristics which represent great agricultural potential. It is worth noting that few scientific studies relate geomorphological issues as an important factor for soil formation, especially in Tocantins, associating the limitations with the chemical and physical characteristics of the soil. In this sense, the development of the work occurred in three stages: In the first, data from the study area were collected through the use of geoprocessing tools, relating information about the distribution of soils in the area; the second was based on bibliographic research on the potential of the soils found in the municipality; the third stage reports the discussion on the data collected, discussing the possible types of soil management. It was found that Latosols had the greatest representation, occupying 41.3%, followed by Plinthosols with 29.3%, Argisols with 21.8%, Neossolos with 5.4%, Gleissolos with 1.6% and urban areas with 0.4%.