The objective of this study was to investigate the street arborization in Piracicaba
city, São Paulo State, taking into account the public management, legislation and
educative actions and looking for understanding the technical opinion of professionals
involved in this issue. It was also used participatory research to understand the needs of
a population segment, and the reasons that this segment sees the element “tree” with
preconception or in a negative way, showing desire to request successive trees cut made
nowadays. It was also tried to identify factors that could stimulate change in the
population mind and could be used in an educative advertising to build a better
relationship between people and street arborization. This research concluded that street
arborization is compromised by a lack of favorable and defined public policy for street
trees planting in the city. The street arborization, which has not a planed policy, has been
negatively influenced by the government changes. Due to this fact, big trees have been
systematically cut from the streets, and being substituted by other small and medium
species size, with less environmental effect, to attend the rules imposed by CPFL and
population preconception. It was questioned the technical criterions adopted by Piracicaba Hall to authorize to cutting trees and the lack of a philosophic capacity and
education among the workers responsible by the administration and management of
street arborization. This education could make them to develop a greater feeling of
affectivity and compromise with trees and arborization, which would be an example for
the population. The research carried out with two different citizenships groups of
Piracicaba showed that problems related with sidewalk broken by tree roots growth,
“dirty” coming from the trees, such as leaves and flowers, interference in the city power
net and culvert clogged have been the most problems noted by the population segment
researched. However, discussion and reflections about the issue made by the population
groups showed a predisposition to bring solutions that could not caus e a sacrifice for the
street arborization. Furthermore, items such as “beautiful” and “shade” were noted as the
most important advantageous of street arborization. The participatory research, as a
methodological resources used as an approach of the subject beside the studied groups,
stimulated a rise in their environmental perceptions, bringing a feeling of appropriation
and co-responsibility by their collective space, and a potential for thinking and acting
about their reality. According to these results, it is recommended a formulation and an
implementation of a public policy to increment and improve the quality of street
arborization in the city, based on the evidence that there is not an “ideal tree” for street
arborization. Through the broad education projects, there is a need of stimulating the
development of feelings that take into account more respect and tolerance between trees
and population.
