O que se vê além de uma monocultura de eucalipto: uma abordagem territorial sobre as condições de desenvolvimento do município de Martinho Campos (MG, Brasil)

Abstract

The international industry of steel is based on a supply chain supported by small municipalities. Besides the extraction of iron ore, steel industries make use of large areas of eucalyptus, whose wood is used for charcoal production, feedstock used in the furnaces of steel mills. This dissertation aims to understand the impact of eucalyptus monoculture ruled by a major international economic actor, in the development trajectory of a small town; in this case, the county is Martin Campos (Minas Gerais), in southeastern Brazil, where ArcelorMittal, the largest steel producer in the world, operates in the eucalyptus plantation. From the theoretical approach of Sustainable Territorial Development, it was important to the analysis the use of quantitative methodology through the analysis of secondary data and qualitative methodology, through individual in-depth interviews and bibliographical material. The data allowed tracing the history of the city since the arrival of ArcelorMittal; the current scenario of economic activities of the town; the perception of public actors, residents and local institutions on environmental, social and economic aspects related to the production of eucalyptus and on the potential of the municipality. The analysis showed that the municipality, in terms of productive activities, is predominantly dependent on forestry, although the volumes produced by the dairy livestock. It was also shown that even in relation to the forestry there are other companies in the sector with an important economic role in the city apart from ArcelorMittal. Nevertheless, this company has an influence on public life and in the mentality of the local actors who puts the company in a prominent position in comparison to other actors. This fact showed another type of dependency, not economic, primordially, but social, political and institutional specifically.