Data from: The financial needs vs. the realities of in situ conservation: an analysis of federal funding for protected areas in Brazil’s Caatinga

In situ conservation is an effective strategy to protect biodiversity, and Brazil has one of the largest protected area (PA) systems in the world. However, the distribution of Brazilian PAs is uneven and the Caatinga drylands are poorly protected. As financial resources are essential for effectively managing PAs, we analyzed the Brazilian Government’s budget allocated to 20 federal PAs in the Caatinga between 2008 and 2014, which ranged from 231,575 USD in 2008 to 13.5 Mi USD in 2011. Neither expenses, nor the availability of funds, were homogeneous among PAs or throughout the years. Land acquisition in a single PA consumed ~75% of the budget, and the two smallest PAs received proportionally the most money. Excluding land acquisition, the 20 PAs received 0.50 USD/ha/year. Funds were allocated not to biodiversity conservation per se but mainly to securing offices, cars, and equipment. From 2012 onwards, the PA budget was reduced. Even including salaries, the budget allocated for these PAs is ~13 times lower than what the Ministry of the Environment declared necessary for the basic operation of protected areas in Brazil, 1.5 times lower than values spent worldwide, up to 5 times lower than spent in Latin American and African parks, and up to 72 times lower than spent in the European Union, exposing one cause of the precarious situation of the Caatinga PAs.

原地保护（in situ conservation）是保护生物多样性的有效策略，巴西拥有全球规模最大的保护区（protected area, PA）体系之一。然而巴西保护区的分布极不均衡，卡廷加（Caatinga）干旱地带的保护状况尤为薄弱。鉴于财政资源是保护区有效管理的必要支撑，本研究分析了2008至2014年间巴西政府拨付给该地区20处联邦保护区的预算资金，其额度区间为2008年的231575美元至2011年的13.5 Mi USD。各保护区间及不同年度的经费支出与资金供给均不均衡。单处保护区的土地购置成本一度占总预算的约75%，而两处规模最小的保护区按比例获得的资金额度最高。剔除土地购置成本后，20处保护区的年均单位面积投入为0.50美元/公顷/年。资金分配并未直接服务于生物多样性保护本身，而是主要用于办公场地保障、车辆购置与设备采购。2012年起，保护区预算开始缩减。即便将人员薪酬计入在内，此类保护区的预算额度仍较巴西环境部（Ministry of the Environment）公布的巴西保护区基本运营所需资金低约13倍，较全球平均投入水平低1.5倍，较拉丁美洲与非洲的保护区投入低至多5倍，较欧盟的保护区投入低至多72倍，这一现状揭示了卡廷加地区保护区运营窘境的成因之一。