Ecohydrological analysis in watersheds of mountain areas of São Paulo coastal, Brazil

In the Brazilian state of São Paulo, the coastal municipalities have watersheds in mountains with active relief evolution (Serra do Mar). The coastal regions are more vulnerable to flooding and landslides. A large number of people live on the slopes of Serra do Mar, these places are more vulnerable to landslides, which causes biodiversity loss and tragedies. This study seeks to present an ecohydrological analysis to categorize coastal watersheds into clusters considering the spatial characteristics of NDVI, DTM, soil depth, climate, and Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) and identify areas' susceptibility to landslides in the coastal watersheds of the State of São Paulo. The findings show that vegetation cannot prevent landslides from happening on its own. The higher altitude regions, where the tropical forest is still present, are those most prone to landslides, designated as cluster 2.