O ambiente e a Castanha-do-Brasil (Bertholletia excelsa Bonpl.) na Comunidade São Sebastião do Igapó Açu: um estudo na RDS Igapó Açu, Borba-Am

Abstract

This research has as object of study, the São Sebastião de Igapó Açu community. It aimed to observe how community members make use of forest resources. This community is located within the Igapó Açu Sustainable Development Reserve Conservation Unit (RDS Igapó Açu), located on highway BR 319, in the municipalities of Borba, Manicoré and Beruri. The community has 22 families with approximately 200 people, adherents to the Catholic and Adventist religion and who practice various activities as a way to solve their immediate needs and to generate income. The objectives of the research were: to describe the historical aspects of the São Sebastião community of Igapó Açu, producer of Brazil nut; To characterize the brazil nut production methods, highlighting the knowledge and productive practices and to identify the difficulties encountered by the individuals working on Brazil nut extractivism, and the importance of the food system of the riverine ones. The division of labor presented the following structure: In the first chapter a historical retrospective of the community is made. The emergence, their way of life, their cultural manifestations, the older and more recent residents, Its prospects for the future and its income activities, mainly the collection, preparation and sale of brazil nuts. In the second chapter of the research there is a concentration of analysis on the extractive production of Brazil nut and all the daily dynamics that involve the use of this resource by the community, and finally, in the third chapter, Within the recent conjuncture, the strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats that the extractive activity of brazil nuts and, also, the way of life of the community, has been facing. For that, the matrix F.O.F.A. (F - Strengths, O - Opportunities, F - Weaknesses and A - Threats) as a tool to analyze the daily reality of the community. This tool was put into practice through workshops carried out during the researcher's fieldwork in a participative way with the extractivists.