Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística

Experimental GEO TRADUZIR

About the publication - 2022

Environmental statistics constitute an important dimension of scientific knowledge about biodiversity. Nevertheless, the mere addition of new elements to these sets of information may not necessarily turn into new knowledge, once the databases already available in the country, produced by a number of institutions, demand the careful evaluation of their potential, aiming at the effectiveness of the existing databases.

Being aware of its status as coordinator of the National Statistical System – SEN, which is responsible for the production, systematization, and dissemination of economic, social and environmental statistics about the country, the IBGE released initial data about the accounts of natural capital in 2020, encompassing, on the occasion, the use of land in Brazilian biomes. Since then, other institutional studies came into view, such as that on endangered species in Brazil, a relevant topic for one of the most bio-diverse countries in the world. That reflects its compliance with international efforts for measuring ecosystems and its importance to society.

In this publication, the IBGE assesses the quality and the spatial and temporal coverages of the records of species available in the Information System on the Brazilian Biodiversity (SiBBr), a governmental platform that integrates data and information on biodiversity from different sources. The assessments were made from the records of nine taxonomic groups representing different types of ecosystems distributed along the national territory: amphibians, arthropods, birds, fungus, mammals, mollusks, bony fishes, vascular plants and reptiles.

It should be highlighted that the geoscientific information released herein is experimental, i.e., it is under assessment because it still did not hit a complete degree of maturity in terms of harmonization, coverage or methodology. Nevertheless, it is expected that the metrics used in this investigation might contribute to pinpoint knowledge gaps, establish research priorities and select areas that already have available data to produce pilot studies, as well as to detect the major data restrictions, eventually favoring the strategies of qualification and complementation of this information.

This publication can be also accessed on the IBGE portal, which also provides other institutional studies related to the environment, like the Environmental-Economic Accounts.