Brazil contains the world’s second largest mangrove area - estimates
suggest that over a million hectares of mangrove forest are found along
Brazil’s extensive coastline. Urban expansion, oil development, the
charcoal industry, roadways, and tourism have all taken their toll on
large stretches of mangrove forests. Now these damaged ecosystems are
facing further ruination due to shrimp aquaculture.
For many years, both MAP and Red Manglar, a Brazilian NGO dedicated to
protecting mangroves and coastal ecosystems, have tried to warn
Brazilians of the potential dangers their nation is facing, based on
the destruction wrought by the shrimp industry in other parts of the
world.
MAP Director Alfredo Quarto participated in the Manglar 2003 Conference
held from May 23-28 in El Salvador, an event co-sponsored by the
Instituto Internacional de Ecologia, UNESCO and other organizations.
Over 200 people attended, including many Brazilian academics, some
international researchers and NGOs, local aquaculturists, journalists,
and many students. During this event, attention was drawn to the issues
presented by the burgeoning shrimp aquaculture industry, which is now
emerging as a major developmental force, and one that’s nearly
impossible to control.
A conscientious local shrimp farmer, Alexandre Wainberg, gave an
informative talk about Brazil’s aquaculture industry, which he was
instrumental in establishing. According to Wainberg, shrimp aquaculture
has existed on a small scale in Brazil since the 1970s. Until recently,
the industry has grown slowly, increasing production at a steady yet
manageable pace. In 2000, there were approximately 5,000 hectares of
shrimp ponds in Brazil, many of which were built directly in mangrove
areas. Most of the ponds, however, were built in expansive areas called
salinas, or salt flats, which were former mangrove lands cleared many years ago to establish shallow salt pans. Many of these salinas have since been abandoned, and were naturally returning to mangroves.
Now, unfortunately, entrepreneurs interested in shrimp farming ventures
are targeting these areas. The industry is currently being primed for a
rapid spurt of growth, possibly leading Brazil to take a place among
the other aquaculture giants such as Thailand, Ecuador, and China.
Wainberg expressed concern that without proper planning and strict
management, Brazil’s shrimp industry would lead to the same
environmental problems it has caused elsewhere, and all of his early
efforts to establish a sustainable livelihood would be for nought.
Problems include overuse of pesticides and antibiotics in the shrimp
ponds themselves, excessive water pollution, devastating viral disease
spread between shrimp farms, loss of important coastal marine habitat
such as mangroves, mudflats, and salt flats - all resulting in wild
fish declines, loss of vital migratory bird habitat and loss of
traditional livelihoods for coastal communities.
A multitude of national and multinational investors is vying for space
along the Brazilian coast to establish new shrimp ventures. Shrimp
farmers from Ecuador’s and Taiwan’s own beleaguered coasts are coming
to Brazil to restart their once-lucrative ventures anew. The Brazilian
government is welcoming these investors with open arms, hoping to
stimulate its often flagging economy with the influx of foreign capital.
The industry’s growth is in desperate need of monitoring and control.
Sixty thousand tons of farmed shrimp were produced in 2002; production
is anticipated to exceed 160,000 tons by 2005. As is so often the case,
the enticement of enormous capital gains is unfortunately blinkering
the Brazilian government and citizens to the dangers shrimp farming
will present to the environment.
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