Participatory Management of Fisheries in the Brazilian Amazon

INTRODUCTION The Brazilian Amazon covers an area of approximately 5 million square kilometres, 60% of the country. Its 17 million inhabitants make up a population density of 3.35 inhabitants per square kilometre. In Amazonia, fishing is of fundamental economic, social and cultural importance for the region., producing gross revenues of around US$ 200 million (Petrere, Barthem & Magnawita 1992) and generating more than 100,000 direct and indirect jobs. Fish is the principal source of protein for the local population, who consume on average 360g/person/day (Cerdeira, Ruffino & Isaac 1997). In spite of its importance fisheries administration in the Amazon has historically played second fiddle in the priorities of government development programmes for the region. State incentives for the development of the fisheries at the end of the '60s were mainly directed towards the commercial, export-based sector in the estuarine area (Dias Neto, Damasceno & Pontes 1982). The fisheries in the interior received only sporadic attention, with occasional specific legislation responding to local political or ecological pressures. The Bureau for Fisheries Development (SUDEPE), which was at that time responsible for national fisheries, gave scant attention to fisheries in the Amazon interior, with inadequate regulations, based on incomplete data and scientific information.. There was no systematic attempt to gather historically accurate catch and effort data along with the technological and socioeconomic characteristics that would provide the 3 basis for any fisheries development and management in the region.. The majority of government research programmes were never completed. However, it is common knowledge that in recent years there has been a marked decline in the abundance of certain species, particularly those more heavily exploited such as Piramutaba This is probably as a result of overfishing. Lack of fish close to urban centres meant that trips became longer and more expensive (Petrere 1985, 1986, 1991). In turn this generated social conflicts between commercial fishermen and riverine communities (Hartmann 1989). At the same time a demographic explosion in the regional urban centres increased the demand for fish, resulting in major modifications in the way the stocks were exploited. The introduction, in 1968, of new fishing and storage technologies, export based fish factories and an