Atlantic Forest South-East Reserves

Infrastructure in the buffer zones of the site—which includes settlements, mining operations, roads, tourism facilities, water impoundments, and drainage systems—contributes to the degradation and fragmentation of natural habitats, hinders habitat restoration, increases pollution and sedimentation, and negatively affects wildlife (BirdLife International, 2012; UNEP-WCMC, 2011). However, no comprehensive assessment of these impacts has yet been conducted in this serial World Heritage property. According to the recent State Party report (2023), housing developments outside the property, along with nearby industrial areas, are currently exerting negative impacts on the World Heritage site. For example, Vancine et al. (2023) conducted a comprehensive spatiotemporal analysis of 34 years of 78 sites in the Atlantic Forest landscape and concluded that linear infrastructure negatively affected large fragments of forest by increasing the habitat fragmentation and disrupting the functional connectivity of several ecological processes. Additionally, da Cruz Costa et al. (2022) concluded that roadkill incidents are linked to species' use of similar habitat matrices, identifying areas with a high probability of roadkill for two feline species, the ocelot and the jaguarundi. The full impact of roads and other transportation infrastructure on wildlife cannot be accurately assessed without considering the broader landscape context. Visitor accommodations and facilities, as well as terrestrial and marine transportation infrastructure, may generate potential positive or negative impacts. These negative impacts are primarily associated with the disruption of traditional communities and the transformation of the natural landscape, largely driven by real estate speculation linked to tourism and recreational activities. Conversely, Community-Based Tourism has been steadily expanding and is recognized as playing a constructive role by supporting the preservation of cultural heritage and promoting environmental sustainability.

Poaching, timber extraction, non-timber forest product collection, palm harvesting, and both commercial and subsistence agriculture represent significant threats to protected areas, contributing to further habitat fragmentation and the decline of wildlife populations. Between 1985 and 2019, the Atlantic Forest lost 328,595 hectares, with a large portion of this area converted into Eucalyptus plantations due to economic policies in the forestry sector (Ramos et al., 2022). From 2010 to 2020, Amaral et al. (2025) identified 14,401 deforestation polygons in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, resulting in the loss of 186,289 hectares—most of which were likely illegal. These losses occurred mainly in small patches on private lands for agricultural expansion but also affected protected areas and Indigenous lands. According to Resende et al. (2024), nearly 90% of the remaining Brazilian Atlantic Forest lies within private properties. Related to this, illegal logging and the extraction of palm hearts remain some of the most serious conservation challenges. Numerous species are targeted for their valuable timber, and deforestation rates continue to be high in certain regions (UNEP-WCMC, 2012). In São Paulo State, the expansion of Pinus elliottii plantations—an invasive species—exerts increasing pressure on Atlantic Forest remnants both within and outside protected areas (BirdLife International, 2012; UNEP-WCMC, 2011; Parkswatch, 2002; WWF Brazil, n.d.; IUCN Consultation, 2017). Other conservation concerns include mining for calcareous materials, gold, and lead, although the extraction of gold and lead has reportedly declined. The original nomination dossier identifies several coastal habitats as being under threat, including hygrophilous forests, mangroves, dunes and shoals, seaside plain forests, swamps, and lagoons.

Some areas experienced a tourism boom in the late 1990s, which threatened both the environment and local communities due to rapid, unregulated development related to accommodations, transport facilities, and other infrastructure. Since then, development restrictions and daily visitor limits have been implemented, along with the creation of visitor infrastructure, which has helped to better manage visitor flow. When well-planned, tourism and ecotourism activities are viewed by stakeholders as effective tools to support protected areas, reduce pressure on the remaining Atlantic Forest fragments (IUCN Consultation, 2017), and strengthen local economies. In 2023, the State Party emphasized the potential positive impacts of tourism—both within and around the property's boundaries—such as boosting the local economy and raising conservation awareness, while also acknowledging ongoing negative impacts from the potential uncontrolled tourism in surrounding areas (State Party of Brazil, 2023).

This World Heritage site encompasses the largest Atlantic Forest remnants in Brazil and is the biggest remaining block of the biome. Nonetheless, some of the protected areas, mostly the private ones, that make up the site are very small and vulnerable to outside influences. The isolation is being exacerbated by human interventions that further degrade and fragment habitats, and by climate change and will result in the loss of biodiversity over time (Birdlife International, 2012; UNEP-WCMC, 2011; WWF, n.d.; Perry, 2011). Such anthropogenic pressures also have indirect effects in reducing biodiversity, as spatial species richness has been shown to decrease dramatically in landscapes where forest cover has fallen below 30% (Estavillo et al., 2013). It is important to note that since the inscription of the site on the World Heritage List, two state protected areas mosaics were declared by the State of Sao Paulo within the region and other Federal protected areas were created in the Paraná state (IUCN Consultation, 2017). Nonetheless, fragmentation and biological isolation remain the most serious threats to the remnants of Atlantic Forest. Creation of ecological corridors is considered essential, as conservation units created across the Atlantic Forest are considered insufficient to preserve the remaining biodiversity of this fragmented biome (Santos et al., 2018). While no analysis has been undertaken specifically for the World Heritage site, it will be important to assess the degree to which it continued being affected by fragmentation in the years following its inscription on the World Heritage List. It is important to highlight two recent studies on ecological connectivity conducted in the Southeastern Atlantic Forest in 2023 and 2024. The first, by Silva et al. (2023), presented two key conclusions: (1) the Atlantic Forest has undergone significant transformation due to urban expansion and the widespread conversion of land for agriculture and pasture, resulting in a highly fragmented biome; and (2) the ecological corridors that support the movement of native species also facilitate the spread of invasive species, raising important conservation concerns. The analysis used two species with contrasting environmental requirements—the jaguar (Panthera onca) and the wild pig (Sus scrofa)—as indicators of protected area connectivity. The study found that both species were able to traverse the altered landscape, although connectivity opportunities were notably greater for the wild pig. The fact that the same ecological corridors that enable the movement of the native jaguar—an apex predator with high environmental sensitivity—also allow for the expansion of the invasive wild pig underscores the complexity and challenges of managing connectivity in human-modified landscapes. The second study, by Ribeiro et al. (2024), identified several challenges and opportunities in the planning and implementation of ecological corridors in the Southeastern Atlantic Forest, addressing a gap in the literature regarding the evaluation of ecological corridor implementation. However, further investigation is needed to provide a more comprehensive understanding of landscape connectivity in the Atlantic Forest South-East Reserves.

Pollution of marine, surface, and groundwater has been identified as a negative factor occurring outside the boundaries of the property. The 25 protected areas that make up the site are very close to the port region of Paranaguá, which plans to expand. There is a lack of sewage treatment and waste disposal systems in the municipalities (State Party of Brazil, 2023).

While traditional artisanal fishing is generally not considered a threat to aquatic resources, commercial fishing is recognized as a significant concern (UNEP-WCMC, 2012). Fishing and the collection of aquatic and wild plant resources are acknowledged to have both positive and negative impacts within the property; however, the positive contributions have either diminished or remained stable over time (State Party of Brazil, 2023).