Traditional knowledge and territorialities of artisanal fishermen in the context of hydroelectric developments in the frontier amapaense Amazon

Abstract

Artisanal fishermen in the Brazilian Amazon face various socio-economic, environmental and cultural problems in the current context, arising from the advance of hydroelectricity on the region's rivers. On the frontier of the Amapá Amazon, this reality can be better understood from the perspective of the fishermen living in the municipalities of Ferreira Gomes and Porto Grande, who fish in the Médio Araguari, where the development of their practices is guided by a diverse set of traditional knowledge, which is currently undergoing serious disturbances, related, among other factors, to the compromising of their fishing territoriality. This research is therefore interested in traditional knowledge and, consequently, in the fishing territorialities developed by fishermen in these municipalities at the present time. To this end, data was collected through on-site observations, photographic records, interviews and bibliographical research. The results highlight the importance of traditional knowledge and know-how and the serious implications of the presence of hydroelectric dams on both fishing and territoriality of fishermen in the Médio Araguari, in the State of Amapá.