Soil bioengineering in northeastern Brazil: An Overview

Abstract This article presents an overview of the application of soil bioengineering techniques, also modeled as natural engineering, in the state of Sergipe, northeastern Brazil, showing the importance of integrating living and inert elements to protect river banks from erosion. The employed techniques are different, ranging from the characterization of susceptibility to erosion to the use of biotechniques, considering knowledge in the areas of agronomic engineering, forestry engineering, civil engineering, biology, pedology, geology, geomorphology and geotechnics. It is an approach that uses techniques and methodologies in a multidisciplinary way, seeking to maximize synergies (for example, natural engineering techniques to combine inert materials in ways that help plants to develop increasingly efficient systems). This approach also considers maintenance-cost optimization in the conduction of the works, using different materials, differing from traditional engineering, which uses predominantly inert materials. The research work carried out in different locations sought the availability of local materials such as rocks, geotextiles made from fibers from the native flora or even available on the market, in addition to the use of native species to recovery of the banks or slopes, according to the ecological conditions of the northeastern Brazil. Size and technological and ecological reach were also considered, in addition to different biotechnical aesthetic objectives adapted to different situations.摘要 本文综述了巴西东北部塞尔希培州的土壤生物工程技术（亦被称为天然工程）的应用情况，阐明了整合活体与惰性元素以保护河岸免受侵蚀的重要意义。所采用的技术类型覆盖从侵蚀敏感性表征到生物工程技术应用的全范畴，同时融合了农业工程、林业工程、土木工程、生物学、土壤学、地质学、地貌学及岩土工程等多领域的专业知识。该研究路径采用多学科交叉的技术与方法，旨在最大化协同效应——例如，通过天然工程技术将惰性材料以助力植物构建愈发高效的防护体系的方式进行组合。此路径同时兼顾工程实施过程中的运维成本优化，选用多种材料，区别于传统工程以惰性材料为主的应用模式。在不同地点开展的研究工作，优先选用当地可获取的材料，如岩石、以本土植物纤维制成的土工织物乃至市场上流通的相关材料；同时结合巴西东北部的生态条件，选用本土物种开展河岸或边坡的修复工作。除适配不同场景的各类生物工程美学目标外，项目的规模、技术与生态覆盖范围也被纳入综合考量范畴。