Usage and Environment Perception of Wetlands by a River Population in the River Basin of the Taquari-Antas Region, Rio Grande do Sul / O uso e a percepção ambiental de áreas úmidas por uma população ribeirinha na região da Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio Taquari-Antas, Rio Grande do Sul

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2007

RESUMO

Wetlands are important ecosystems for biodiversity protection; they show a great wealth of species and high levels of endemism. These environments are sources of natural resources for human populations, and they are among the most productive ecosystems in the world. Impacts on wetlands include both some habitat changes and destruction. Mankind depends on the sustained usage of wetlands. Ethnobiology studies the body of knowledge human populations have about the natural resources, the taxonomies, the classifications and the ecosystems on which they depend for their trade or subsistence. To acknowledge the native populations as part of the ecosystem is essential for biodiversity preservation. The ecosystem is directly and indirectly influenced by the relationships the human populations keep with hydrological resources. This being said and upon recognizing the significance of wetlands preservation, besides admitting (acknowledging) the great interaction and body of knowledge traditional populations have about the environmental resources, this study aims at the assessment of the interaction and knowledge of the river population about the local wetlands through the analysis of their adaptive strategies, their specific body of knowledge regarding the dynamics of the natural resources, and their understanding of environment preservation. Thus, two works were developed in the Taquari Valley region. The first one was based on a systematic sampling where the river people of Estrela county were followed along a year, with information collection through qualitative methods, direct observation and semi-structured interviews (with the help of a topic guide). The second one was based on a punctual sampling, where the river people of the counties of Estrela, Lajeado, Bom Retiro do Sul, and Cruzeiro do Sul were interviewed only once through the usage of a questionnaire containing ten statements with some preservation character. These statements were analysed together with sex, age and education level of the interviewees, through the Qui-square distribution in order to check whether these aspects influence or not the fishermens perspective regarding environment perception. The first study showed that the information the Estrelas river dwellers have about the environment the live in and its resources is rich and important for their survival. Besides, much of the reported knowledge comply with the body of knowledge observed by the ecology and limnology. The fishermen know the legislation to protect the wetlands, and they are aware of the importance and the preservation of these systems; they know about the river morphometry, the flooding and drying phases and how they influence the fish wealth. They know when to get fish with higher economic value, although they have strategies to use the less valued ones; they know how to use the fish habitats, and they use such information to develop their fishing strategies. The second study pointed to the fact the river dwellers have a positive perception of the environment they live in. Some divergent opinions had been detected; nevertheless, besides these aspects and based on the Qui-squere results obtained it was noticed the preservation level of each fisherman is not correlated with age, genus and education. To sum up, the studies showed the fishermens tradition, life experience and stories indicate how they are connected with the dynamics of the environment they live in; how they need, as well as the other animals, to establish strategies to survive the most varied adverse events, and how much the environment preservation is able to guarantee their own species preservation. Environment perception is greatly significant, since it translates the relationship between man and nature. This relationship can be sustainable or not. So, the study of how the human populations perceive and establish some relationship with the environment is also one step for the development of management plans, and also a thermometer one can use to assess the environmental education these people have been given

ASSUNTO(S)

sustentabilidade estratégias de sobrevivência biologia geral river dwellers rivers fishing resource sustentability survival strategy rios recursos pesqueiros environment perception ribeirinhos áreas úmidas percepção ambiental wetlands

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