Social Economic context

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The region has one of the highest concentrations of center-pivot irrigation systems in São Paulo State, with 1,651 pivots identified in 2016, particularly in municipalities such as Itaí (the 11th highest concentration nationally), Itapeva, and Paranapanema.

Beyond agriculture, the basin supports industries related to paper and cellulose production, limestone mining, and timber processing. The region also holds significant tourism potential, particularly around the Jurumirim and Chavantes reservoir areas.

The Upper Paranapanema Basin is predominantly rural, with an economy that depends heavily on natural resources such as land and water. Although it covers just over 9% of São Paulo State’s territory, the basin generates less than 1% of the state’s total economic output.

Economic activity is unevenly distributed. More than half of the basin’s GDP is produced by a small number of municipalities, notably Itapetininga, Itapeva, Angatuba, Pilar do Sul and Capão Bonito.

Agriculture plays a significantly larger role in the basin’s economy than it does statewide. While agriculture accounts for around 2% of value added across São Paulo State, in the Upper Paranapanema it contributes between 7% and 65% of municipal value added, depending on the municipality. Overall, the basin generates approximately 12% of the state’s agricultural value add.

Agriculture dominates the economy in the Basin.

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Agriculture dominates the economy in the Basin.

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The Upper Paranapanema Basin is predominantly rural and agricultural. It comprises 34 municipalities with their administrative centres within the basin, as well as parts of a further ten municipalities.

In 2021, the basin had approximately 764,000 residents, representing less than 2% of São Paulo State’s population. Most municipalities have fewer than 30,000 inhabitants, and the four largest (Itapetininga, Itapeva, Capão Bonito and Itararé) together account for about 45% of the basin’s total population.

Livelihoods in the basin are closely linked to land and water use, with agriculture forming a central component of the local economy and daily life having historically shaped settlement patterns, family structures, and local labour markets, creating a strong rural cultural identity.

Social and economic conditions reflect persistent development challenges. According to the 2022 IPDM (Índice Paulista de Desenvolvimento Municipal), 32 of the 34 basin municipalities score below the state average on this index that captures wealth, education and longevity. Only Fartura and Taguaí exceed the state benchmark.

Although access to basic education and health services exists in parts of the basin, income levels and municipal economic capacity are generally lower than the São Paulo State average.

The basin’s development trajectory has been shaped by diverse cultural groups, successive economic transitions and differing institutional arrangements. Municipalities have followed distinct development paths and display varying public management capacities, making the region heterogeneous rather than uniform.

The region contains archaeological sites, artifacts, settlement patterns, and circulation routes documenting human presence across different periods. These records offer important clues about lifeways, cultural practices, and human-environment interactions, though many remain understudied.

From the 19th century onward, road opening, agricultural expansion, economic cycles, urbanisation, and land tenure changes intensified landscape transformation. These historical trajectories shaped the current configuration and identity of basin municipalities.

The region contains associations, cooperatives, and small producers adopting environmentally compatible practices, including agroecological production, community forestry, and traditional crafts. These local initiatives demonstrate the region's capacity to reconcile conservation and production.

The region has areas of landscape, cultural, and environmental interest, including natural attractions, historical contexts, and rural tourism, ecotourism, and adventure tourism initiatives. This reflects cultural value placed on natural heritage and local traditions.

Agriculture in the Upper Paranapanema Basin has become increasingly dependent on the intensive use of natural resources, particularly water.

A key driver of this shift has been the expansion of central pivot irrigation, which has made large-scale, irrigated cropping possible across much of the region.

In the 1980s, there were only three systems operating in the basin. Since then, the number of pivots has grown sharply. Data from the National Water Agency shows that there were around 1,670 systems in 2014, rising to over 2,300 by 2022.

Municipalities with the largest irrigated areas include Itaí, Paranapanema, Itapeva, Itaberá, and Buri.

This expansion reflects the growth of export-oriented crops, particularly soybean and maize, and the increasing corporate nature of agricultural production. Installing and operating a central pivot system requires significant capital investment, which is typically beyond the reach of individual family farmers. As a result, irrigation-led modernisation has reinforced the trend of declining family farming alongside the expansion of larger, more capitalised and competitive agricultural operations.

In the Upper Paranapanema Basin, the number of family farming establishments has been declining, contributing to a broader process of land concentration. Under Brazilian Law No. 11,326 (2006), a family farmer is defined as a producer who operates no more than four fiscal modules of land, relies primarily on family labour, and derives most household income from activities carried out on the rural property.

Analysis by Santos et al. (2023) shows that between 2006 and 2017, the total number of family farming establishments in the basin declined overall, despite some short-term fluctuations. Twenty-two municipalities recorded reductions of more than 20%, seven municipalities experienced declines of 10–20%, and a further two municipalities saw losses of 5–10% in the number of family farms. This contraction occurred alongside a significant expansion in the area under intensified agriculture, indicating that agricultural land has increasingly shifted toward larger, more capitalised production units.

Over the same period, Santos et al. document a substantial increase in land dedicated to intensified agricultural systems, with intensified agriculture expanding by approximately 600% between 1987 and 2017, largely replacing pasturelands. This expansion was closely associated with the growth of mechanised and irrigated cropping systems, reinforcing a pattern in which fewer establishments control a larger share of agricultural land. Taken together, these trends show that agricultural production in the basin has increased in area and intensity, even as the number of family farming operations has declined.

With close to a third of Brazil’s land used for agriculture, farmers are critical actors in any large-scale nature recovery effort.

In the Upper Paranapanema Basin, nature recovery such as reforestation is most effective when it is integrated into existing agricultural systems rather than imposed as land set aside from production.

Evidence shows that regulation alone is unlikely to deliver sustained restoration outcomes. Landowners respond more positively when nature recovery is supported by clear legal frameworks, financial incentives, technical assistance, and flexible restoration models such as agroforestry or natural regeneration.

These approaches reduce perceived risk, align restoration with farm productivity, and increase willingness to participate, especially among smaller landholders. Catchment-scale programmes and payments for ecosystem services are particularly important for enabling broader participation and long-term commitment.

Socio-economic context

A strong agricultural centre and a diverse social context

Current situation

Economic situation

Socio-cultural context

Research insights

Rapid growth of irrigation

Declining numbers of family farms and increasing land concentration

Landowner attitudes to reforestation