A pesca no reservatório de Itaipu: aspectos sócioeconômicos e impactos do represamento

Abstract

Alterations in the composition of stocks and in the dynamics of the water are generalized consequences of impoundments with large effects on the fishing income and strategy. In this study, the history, structural and functional aspects of the fishery in the Itaipu reservoir are discussed. The fishing, which was performed using fishhooks for capturing larger and migratory fishes with larger commercial value, it is now done using gillnets on fish of smaller size. The intensity of this change, however, increased from the fluvial zone to the lacustrine, generating some conflicts of interest due to the fishing modality practiced in each zone. As a result, the system and the fishery management became more complex. This complexity ha increased by regional differences in the type of colonization, land distribution, employment level, investment capacity and social perceptions regarding natural resources. The fishery in the Itaipu reservoir can be characterized by the low profit and over exploitation. The fisherman has a precarious access to the public health services and education, and a poor associative activity. The fish commercialization process is perverse and unjust. The fishing activity has, however, fundamental importance for the family support of people excluded from other productive sections.