From extractivism to intensive cultivation of açaí palm (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) in amazon estuary: management systems and their implications on diversi ty of tree species

Abstract

The recent and significant rise in market demand for açaí juice has driven changes in management of areas of native açaí cultivation. In this context this study seeks to identify different types of management practiced by river dwellers to classify them according to methods of production and to consider them in relation to floristic diversity in the Amazon estuary. To this end, questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and floristic inventories, were used. Results indicated three levels of intensity in management of açaí cultivation: 1) minimal (3% of the areas); 2) moderate (87%); and 3) intense (10%). As far as management practices, thinning and enrichment had the strongest influence on species diversity. The most frequently found species included facão (Clitoria fairchildiana R.A. Howard), which is beneficial to the açaí palm and ucuubeira (Virola surinamensis (Rol. ex Rottb.) Warb.), which is detrimental. Overall the results indicated intensification in the production of açaí, and with it the risk of disappearance of other species and a tendency towards monoculture.