Exploração Madeireira Familiar no Rio Cuieiras, Baixo Rio Negro, Amazônia Central

Abstract

The lower Rio Negro is populated mainly by indigenous and other traditional people (rubber tappers descendants and natural resources collectors). These populations live very close or by the rivers and represent the accumulated knowledge through generations by the relation they have developed with the forest and rivers. Wood extraction is a very important economic activity widely practiced, influencing the dynamic of how indigenous and traditional people use the natural resources in the lower Rio Negro. Since the creation of the Brazilian Forest Law, in 1965, this practice and related dynamics are considered predatory and illegal, once they do not follow patterns of sustainable forest management established in the law. The illegal condition is the bottle neck that compromises not only the economic, but also social and ecological sustainability. One of the main drawbacks implementing the community forest management is the illegality of which locals are classified and reflects the lack of information about the economic, ecological, social and cultural dynamics of wood extraction system in the region. In this sense, this study has the objective to characterize and understand the wood exploration from the local perspective, promoting a different look at the wood extraction system and the entire dynamic associated. The wood extraction history in the Lower Rio Negro shows us that there were many different cycles for this activity and was always related to the development and growth of the city of Manaus. Until the end of the 70s, all processed wood in the region were still made with axes. In the beginning of the 80s, wood extractors start using chainsaws, not only increasing production per worker, but also utilizing different varieties of tree species. Timber has been used to build boats, furniture, houses, and spit for roasting meat in the market of Manaus. This study indicates that 93 tree species are being used, including 48 tree species for building houses, 21 tree species for boats, 20 tree species for furniture, 16 tree species for spit and 19 tree species for other uses as soft wood. The wood extraction system in the region is classified as low scale and seasoned, not only associated with resources scarcity and economic viability, but strategies and adaptations related to political, environmental and social aspects as well. In general, families extracting wood in the Cuieiras river use and manage more than 200 different plant and animal species. Despite wood extraction is one of the main economic alternatives, there is not a specialization for this activity, but different practices for multiple use of natural resources and income generation. It was possible to identify two different groups of wood extractors: the ones technically very well qualified and those with low qualification