Exploração do açaí de várzea em áreas nativas e manejadas na Comunidade Foz do Rio Mazagão Velho, Mazagão, Amapá

Abstract

The açaí plant (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) is a palm native to the Amazon region, predominant in floodplains, due to its adaptability in soils rich or poor in organic matter. In the Amapá state, the increase in demand for the açaí fruit has been occurring since the 1990s and, since then, its appreciation in the domestic and foreign markets has grown, encouraging the riverside communities to assimilate management techniques of the açaí groves to increase productivity and improve family income. Therefore, the objective was to analyze the açaí extraction activity in the Foz do Rio Mazagão Velho community, Mazagão, Amapá, aiming at an understanding of the local dynamics of the activity, as well as to get to know the perception of producers in relation to sustainable management in the exploration activity by riverside families. The research it was carried out in June 2019, through an interview with 20 agroextractive producers in the community, having as inclusion criteria the minimum age of 18 years old and the participation of individuals in the extraction of açaí. An interview script was used, addressing socioeconomic and environmental aspects. The information obtained was recorded, transcribed, compared in an analytical framework and, subsequently, represented in tables and graphs. It was found among the interviewees, the participation of 77.78% of individuals of male sex and age range from 30 to more than 60 years of age, who stressed that they started extracting açaí since childhood. The activities that most generate income in the community are the extraction of açaí and the fishing of regional shrimp, followed by the commercialization of fruit pulp. In the extraction of açaí, most of the areas explored vary from 6 to 150 hectares among the research subjects and have not yet been fully managed, containing more native areas for the exploration of açaí. The satisfaction of extractive producers about the benefits that sustainable management adds to the activity was notorious, with 100% of respondents saying that management facilitates the collection of fruits and increases production. It was also pointed out that community extractivists receive incentives and guidance from agencies active in the area of local development and contribute to the sustainable management of açaí for commercial exploitation