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Agro ecological center must become international reference in organical production
The Center has as one of its assignments take care of family agriculture taking as priority the transference of the knowledge of the producers and technicians and to improve the professional formation in agrarian sciences. It also propitiates to the inmates of the criminal colony activities, through occupational therapies, the treatment of the interns of the psychiatric hospital, making them become specialized workmanship.
The project is a partnership among the Secretariat of Agriculture and the Supplying - Seab, Secretariat of Planning, Iapar, Emater, Sanepar, UFPR (Federal University of the State of Paraná), Agricultural Criminal Colony and Adauto Botelho Psychiatric Hospital. It consists on promoting the development of organic agriculture, by means of scientific experiments and research, enabling the small producer, students and professionals of the area.
The activities of the Center is concentrated in projects and sub projects of research, education and extension, elaborated and lead for multidiscipline teams. The proposal is to contemplate some sectors of the agro-economical knowledge, such as projects of handling with cattle of milk, poultry keeping, ovinocultura (sheep breeding), beekeeping, environment monitoring, agro-forest systems, medicinal plants, ornamental fruticultura (fruit nurturing), olericultura (green nurturing) and plants. “The programs that were already executed are very important to achieve the success – Parana Agro-ecology Reference Center - that has great chances to develop a good work and to improve the qualification of our agriculturists”, said the Secretariat of Agriculture and lieutenant governor, Orlando Pessuti.
The Center is in charge to produce forest and native essences, organic composites, covering plants and deceased coverings as well as destines part of its area for foods and medicinal production, aromatic plants and condiments.
There´s a Model Farm in operation which offers courses for education, diffusion and extension of agro-ecology, directed for agriculturists and its children, students of Veterinarian Medicine and Agronomy. Forty and two pupils participate of a specialization course, which takes two years. All month long, they learn new techniques during a week and three weeks long they spend their time in its country properties, practicing what was taught.
The production of bio manures (to the base of animal dung, grass, fruits and minerals) for land fertilization, the organic composite production, humus of earthworm and green seasonings are in full development.
Organic gardens offer products that are consumed in the Center and all the leftover goes for what is called “merenda” (snack time) of the schools in that specific region. “With all these functions, the Center is pioneering in the full integration of research activities, education, extension and social reintegration, focusing on a sustainable and environmentally correct agriculture, increasing the requirement of all the civil society”, added Pessuti.
Parana Agro-ecology Reference Center idealized by the Government of the State as a tool of support to the development and viability of organic and agro-ecological agriculture in the state of Paraná, is taking care in a special way of the family agriculture.
Its main goals are to generate technician-scientific knowledge, to promote training and education and to carry through the conversion of the areas of the institutions partners for the organic food production.
In 2004, through Paraná Fund of the Secretariat of Science and Technology, 2 million reais were destined for the financing of research projects, education and extension in the areas of milk production, ground handling, medicinal plants production, and Public Health control Center.
The training and education, through Sanepar, had been offered for about 2.000 people (students, professors, public officers and technicians of different areas) courses on environment education, emphasizing the preservation of the quality of the water and the protection of sources and rivers.
The Center also organized what is called “practice days” directed to the handling, recovery and conservation of ground, focusing especially on organic composite production, the use of green seasonings and bio manures, and to correct techniques toward the production of worm húmus.
On those “practise days” 400 producers paticipated, producers children and students, who had received orientations on the main bases from sustainability from organic agriculture.
The conversion of the area where the Agroecologia Center is in is a result of the integration of IAPAR, EMATER, Federal University of the Paraná, Adauto Botelho Hospital Colony and Agricultural Criminal Colony farms. It is a result of a daily work rotine, in which other activities are made, for example, the organic production of bio manures and composites, the plantation of winter and summer covering, the culture of grains, the adequay and handling of the flocks, the reform and implantation of orchards, gardens and collections of medicinal, aromatical plants, the production of changes of forest species and fruitful natives, aiming the resetting of the Riparian buffers forest and the Montana Forest.
“The Center has been a reference since its creation on March/2006. It´s been trying to achieve the goals that were set when it was first idealized by the Government of the State which is to be one of the actors to stimulate the growth of organic agriculture in our State and to extend to all society the conscience of the environment preservation”, Pessuti secretary commented.
The Agro ecological Paraná Center situated in Pinhais, metropolitan region of Curitiba, has already started to present positive results.
The center occupies approximately 1500 hectares that surrounds a environment protection area of Iraí Dam. The project promotes environmental education with priority to generate scientific and technological knowledge generation, focusing on organic farming.
The implantation of the system foresees the recovery of the area, with reforestation of the edges of the Iraí Dam and its tributaries that supplies 25% of the population of Curitiba with water.
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