Integração Lavoura-Pecuária-Floresta: Interação entre Componentes e Sustentabilidade do Sistema.

The environmental impact caused by extractive livestock activities is a global concern from the environmental and economic standpoints, since environmental degradation affects plant production directly and animal production indirectly. With a view to lessening environmental damage and adopting more efficient and sustainable production models, the Brazilian government launched governmental policies with financial incentives to their implementation. The Crop-Livestock-Forest integration system (CLFi) consists of simultaneous or successive cultivation for the production of animal- and plant-based foods as well as production of timber and non-timber resources. This system allows for income diversification, increased productivity, benefits to the soil and the system and recovery of degraded areas, in addition to having little environmental impact. However, these may not occur under improper implementation or management of its components, resulting in a scenario of imbalance and competition. Because the forest component remains in the production area for a longer time, the species to be used as well as the arrangement to be adopted must be carefully chosen, since these factors may influence its very development and the development of the other plant components. In view of the complexity of the system and its potential benefits, studies on CLFi are essential for the synthesis of information about the best models to be adopted as a function of the environmental diversity and socioeconomic realities in Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]