Matheus Henrique Mortene, Ronalton Evandro Machado

This study aimed to use the Hydrologic Landscapes as environmental classification method in the Piracicaba, Capivari and Jundiaí river basins, validate and use it as an indicator of water yield and storage areas. The method comprises in the same Information Plan (IP) factors that interact with the hydrological cycle in its terrestrial phase. The state of São Paulo, where most of the area is located, constantly suffer from water scarcity. Climate, soil permeability, aquifer permeability, and relief data were used as evaluation units with the aim of identifying favorable areas of water yield/storage. Each pixel received a value of HLR - Hydrologic Landscape Region, which summarizes hydro-geomorphologic characteristics of the site. To evaluate the method efficiency, the annual water yield (R/P) of each sub-basin was calculated using flow data from its main rivers. This data is necessary to identify the factor "m" (Fuh’s equation), a parameter associated with characteristics of the river basin, such as slope and water infiltration into the soil. The values of water yield and the "m" factor corroborate with previous studies, proving that parameters chosen as evaluation units are effective to identify favorable areas for water yield and storage. The classification in Hydrologic Landscapes has proved to be an effective tool in the identification of these areas, which is essential for the optimization of limited financial resources applied in water resources management projects. The results indicate that basins can be considered as water yield areas and, at the same time, have high storage capacity, since the coefficients R / P and factor "m" had a positive correlation.