Domingos Ferreira Lima, 61, a fisherman for 40 years, used to earn R$700 (US$343) a week by selling fish. Now, he needs to work a full month to make the same amount.
Lima lives in Lajeado, a city in the state of Tocantins with less than 3,000 residents. He earns a living by fishing, but the amount of fish in the river has been decreasing since the Luiz Eduardo Magalhães Hydroelectric Power Plant was built in 1998. Since the Tocantins River’s flow was changed, the flora and fauna have been affected.
Before, fish would migrate up and down the river. Now, they are trapped in the lake [of the hydroelectric power plant]. You no longer find fish in the river, says Lima, who learned to fish with his father and is now president of the Lajeado Fishermen Association.
But Lima has a chance to reshape his profession thanks to the Fishing and Aquaculture Harvest Plan, launched in October 2012 by Brazil’s Federal Government.
The plan includes the establishment of new aquaculture parks in lakes and reservoirs in various regions of Brazil, the provision of a R$4.1 billion (US$2 billion) line of credit and investments to strengthen the fishing sector and increase domestic production by 2014.
In December, the Brazilian Environmental Protection Agency (Ibama) authorized the farming of tambaqui, a fish native to the Amazon River Basin, in net pens a type of cage in the Tocantins River Basin.
The expectation is with fish farming and the lines of credit, fish production will reach 470,000 tons in just the reservoirs of Lajeado and Tucuruí in the state of Pará.
Tambaqui is the key fish in fish farming in Tocantins. It grows rapidly and its meat is prized internationally, so it’s also an excellent substitute for cod, says José Coutinho Júnior, a businessman in Tocantins’ fishing sector, specializing in aquaculture projects.
Tambaqui is the species that’s most raised in excavated tanks in the state, according to Tocantins’ Fishing and Aquaculture Federal Superintendent Josafá Maciel.
Raising the fish in excavated tanks already was allowed because in this system there is less risk of introducing the species into the Tocantins River. Since these types of tanks aren’t in the Tocantins River Basin, the fish can’t escape. However, net pens are in the river. Escape is inevitable and, thus, the system is more controversial.
Because of its good growth performance, this native species dominates the production chain and adapts most quickly to being raised in net pens, Maciel says.
With the plan, the government aims to reduce social inequality and lift 100,000 fishing families out of poverty by 2014. In total, about 330,000 families will benefit, including Lima’s family.
We will set up a cooperative and with the lines of credit will raise tambaqui in net pens, Lima says.
Lines of credit
The lines of credit aren’t only for fish farmers, according to Maria Fernanda Nince Ferreira, the Ministry’s Aquaculture planning and order secretary.
Small-scale fishermen who wish to continue artisanal fishing will also be able to invest in new facilities, equipment and boat renovation, she says.
Everyone involved in fishing, exploration, cultivation, conservation, processing, transportation, commercialization and fishing resources research is eligible for the Harvest Plan.
Lines of credit are awarded to small, medium and large-scale fishermen and fish farmers by the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), Banco do Nordeste, Banco do Brasil, Banco da Amazônia, Caixa Econômica Federal and credit unions.
The lines of credit range from R$2,500 (US$1,230) to R$130,000 (US$64,000) per person. Cooperatives can obtain loans of up to R$40 million. Depending on the loan amount, interest can be from 0.5% to 9% per year.
Each producer accesses an exclusive line that varies according to family members, cooperatives, fisheries, youth and shellfish fisheries, Ferreira says. In addition to interest and an extended grace period, producers are given technical assistance in accordance with their line of credit.
Ferreira says technical assistance is crucial to project success. The Harvest Plan calls for a R$135 million (US$66 million) investment in assistance and courses for 120,000 fishermen.
Classes are about obtaining credit, better production practices and fish conservation and commercialization, Ferreira adds.
Marcos Sebastião, 57, and his wife, Maria do Rosário, 60, raised 10 children by selling fish in Lajeado. The fisherman will be in the same cooperative as Lima.
Whoever does the job well, with help, will be able to pay off their debt in three years, Sebastião says. Money earned can be invested in a farm or chicken husbandry.
Aquaculture park
The Lajeado aquaculture park is in the implementation phase, according to Superintendent Josafá Maciel.
The Luís Eduardo Magalhães Hydroelectric Power Plant’s reservoir serves, in addition to Lajeado, the municipalities of Ipueiras, Brejinho de Nazaré, Porto Nacional, Palmas, Miracema do Tocantins and Tocantínia.
Maciel says the Fishing and Aquaculture Ministry decided that eight parks should be created in the reservoir. They will serve 1,700 fishermen from six colonies. The Federal Government expects production to be 168,000 tons per year.
The park is like a rural settlement, he adds. We define the areas and subdivide them into lots that will be distributed through bidding.
According to the plan, 51% of Lajeado reservoir’s park will be divided among small-scale producers and 49% will be for the medium and large-scale.
Bidding should start for occupation of the reservoir during the next two months.
Aquaculture is a good investment, Ferreira says. Fish is food and everyone spends money on that.
For Lima, it’s about more than just food.
This is our chance to follow a path different from the one created by the construction of the hydroelectric power plant, he says optimistically.