Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Development and Conservation Frontiers in the Pantanal Wetland

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Frontier Making in the Amazon

Part of the book series: Key Challenges in Geography ((KCHGE))

Abstract

The challenges related to the conservation of the Pantanal are analysed through a study of the Cuiabá River Basin, one of the most impacted areas in the Upper Paraguay River Basin and located in the Brazilian State of Mato Grosso. The research findings show a clear disconnection between official monitoring data and wider perceptions of processes of eco-hydrological change. In addition, it is found that putting environmental regulatory tools into practice is problematic because of the pregiven foundations of conservation strategies promoted by public agencies. The most significant result of the analysis is the uncertainty in relation to the responsibility for environmental problems, which has created a perverse chain of ‘otherness–noneness–nothingness’. This serves to conceal the underlying causes of environmental degradation in the Cuiabá basin and limit possibilities for resolution. The main conclusion is that, beyond narrow development and conservation debates, it is necessary to account for a range of highly politicised issues at the intersection between interpersonal relations and socio-economic pressures.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Alho CJR (2011) Biodiversity of the Pantanal: its magnitude, human occupation, environmental threats and challenges for conservation. Braz J Bio 71(1, suppl):229–232

    Google Scholar 

  • Alho CJR, Lacher TE Jr, Gonçalves HC (1988) Environmental degradation in the Pantanal ecosystem of Brazil. Bioscience 38(3):164–171

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ANA (National Water Authority) (2005) Strategic action program for the INTEGRATED Management of the Pantanal and the upper Paraguay River Basin: final report. ANA/GEF/PNUMA/OEA, Brasília

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderies JM, Janssen MA, Ostrom E (2004) A framework to analyze the robustness of socialecological systems from an institutional perspective. Ecol Soc 9(1):18. http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol9/iss1/art18

  • Arts K, Rabelo MTO, Figueiredo DM, Maffey G, Ioris AAR Girard P (2018) Online and offline representations of biocultural diversity: a political ecology perspective on nature-based tourism and indigenous communities in the Brazilian Pantanal. Sustainability 10(10):3643. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10103643

  • Babbie E (2001) The practice of social research. Wadsworth Thomson, Belmont CA

    Google Scholar 

  • Bernard H (2002) Research methods in anthropology: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Altamira Press, Walnut Creek

    Google Scholar 

  • Borges JRP, Chaudhry FH, Ferreira Filho P (2000) Um Estudo sobre a Percepção de Ribeirinhos da Bacia do Alto Paraguai a Respeito da Questão de Justiça e Eqüidade em Aproveitamento Hídrico: O Caso da Hidrovia Paraguai-Paraná. Anais - III Simpósio sobre Recursos Natuais e Sócioeconômicos do Pantanal, Corumbá, 27–30 Nov 2000. CPAP-Embrapa

    Google Scholar 

  • Büscher B, Sullivan S, Neves K, Igoe J, Brockington D (2012) Towards a synthesized critique of neoliberal biodiversity conservation. Capital Nat Social 23(2):4–30

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Charnoz O (2010) Community participation in the Pantanal, Brazil: containment games and learning processes. AFD Working Paper No. 93. Agence Française de Développement, Paris

    Google Scholar 

  • Cordeiro NV (1999) Environmental management issues in the Plata Basin. In: Biswas AK, Cordeiro NV, Braga BPF, Tortajada C (eds) Management of Latin American River Basins: Amazon, Plata, and São Francisco. UNUP, Tokyo, pp 148–173

    Google Scholar 

  • da Silva CJ, Girard P (2004) New Challenges in the management of the Brazilian Pantanal and catchment area. Wetlands Ecol Manage 12:553–561

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ecoplan (2003) Diagnóstico da Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio Cuiabá: Relatório Final. Secretaria de Agricultura e Assuntos Fundiários do Estado de Mato Grosso, Cuiabá

    Google Scholar 

  • Figueiredo DM (2009) Limnologia e Qualidade das Águas Superficiais das Sub-bacias Alto e Média. In: Figueiredo DM, Salomão FXT (eds) Bacia do Rio Cuiabá: Uma Abordagem Socioambiental. EdUFMT, Cuiabá, pp 114–125

    Google Scholar 

  • Figueiredo DM, Calheiros DF, Ioris AAR (2018) A Bacia Hidrográfica: Integração do Conhecimento e Reflexão sobre o Desenvolvimento Sustentável. In: Figueiredo DM, Dores EFGC, Lima ZM (eds) Bacia do Rio Cuiabá: Uma Abordagem Socioambiental. EdUFMT, Cuiabá, pp 642–682

    Google Scholar 

  • FURNAS (2012) Usina Hidrelétrica de Manso. http://www.furnas.com.br

  • Galdino S, Vieira LM, Pellegrin LA (2006) Environmental and socioeconomic impacts in the Taquari River Basin-Pantanal. Corumbá, CPAP-Embrapa

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldman M, Schurman RA (2000) Closing the ‘Great Divide’: New social theory on society and nature. Ann Rev Sociol 26:563–584

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gottgens JF (2000) The Paraguay-Paraná Hidrovia: Large-scale Channelization or a ‘Tyranny of Small Decisions’. In: Swarts FA (ed) The Pantanal: understanding and preserving the world’s largest Wetland. Paragon House, St Paul, MN, pp 135–144

    Google Scholar 

  • Gottgens JF, Perry JE, Fortney RH, Meyer J, Benedict M, Rood BE (2001) The Paraguay-Paraná Hidrovia: protecting the Pantanal with lessons from the past. Bioscience 51(4):301–308

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Habermas J (1987) The theory of communicative action: the critique of functionalist reason, vol 2 (trans. McCarthy T). Polity Press, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton SK (1999) Potential Effects of a major navigation project (the Paraguay-Paraná Hidrovia) on inundation in the Pantanal flood plains. Regulated Rivers: Research and Management 15(4):289–299

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton SK (2002) Hydrological controls of ecological structure and function in the Pantanal wetland (Brazil). In: McClain ME (ed) The ecohydrology of South American rivers and wetlands. IAHS special publication no 6, pp 133–158

    Google Scholar 

  • Ioris AAR (2004) Conflicts and contradictions on the occupation of the Pantanal space. In: Tazik DJ, Ioris AAR, Collinsworth SR (eds) The Pantanal: scientific and institutional challenges in management of a large and complex wetland ecosystem. US Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, DC, pp 26–38

    Google Scholar 

  • Ioris AAR (2009) Water reforms in Brazil: opportunities and constraints. J Environ Planning Manag 52(6):813–832

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ioris AAR (2010) The political nexus between water and economics in Brazil: a critique of recent policy reforms. Rev Radic Polit Econ 42(2):231–250

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ioris AAR (ed) (2012) Tropical wetland management: the South-American Pantanal and the international experience. Ashgate, Farnham

    Google Scholar 

  • Ioris AAR (2014) The urban political ecology of post-industrial Scottish towns: examining Greengairs and Ravenscraig. Urban Stud 51(8):1576–1592

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ioris AAR, Irigaray CT, Girard P (2014) Institutional responses to climate change: opportunities and barriers for adaptation in the Pantanal and the upper Paraguay River Basin. Clim Chang 127(1):139–151

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Junk WJ, da Cunha CN (2005) Pantanal: a large South American wetland at a crossroads. Ecol Eng 24:391–401

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Junk WJ, da Silva CJ, da Cunha CN, Wantzen KM (eds) (2011) The Pantanal: ecology, biodiversity and sustainable management of a large neotropical SEASONAL wetland. Pensoft Publishers, Sofia

    Google Scholar 

  • Lourival R, de Queiroz Caleman SM, Villar GIM, Ribeiro AR, Elkin C (2008) Getting fourteen for the price of one! Understanding the factors that influence land value and how they affect biodiversity conservation in Central Brazil. Ecol Econ 67:20–31

    Google Scholar 

  • Meio Ambiente Agora (2011) Operação Guardiões do Pantanal Flagra Crimes Ambientais e Aplica Multas de R$ 122 mil. http://meioambienteagora.com.br/operacao-guardioes-do-pantanal-flagra-crimes-ambientais-e-aplica-multas-de-r-122-mil

  • Olson DM, Dinerstein E (2002) The global 200: priority Ecoregions for global conservation. Ann Mo Bot Gard 89(2):199–224

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • PCBAP (1997) Plano de Conservação da Bacia do Alto Paraguai. Brasília, MMA

    Google Scholar 

  • Piedade MTF, Junk WF, de Sousa Jr, da Cunha CN, Schöngart J, Wittmann F, Candotti E, Girard P (2012) As Áreas Úmidas no Âmbito do Código Florestal Brasileiro. In: Código Florestal e a Ciência. Comitê Brasil em Defesa das Florestas e do Desenvolvimento Sustentável, Brasília, pp 9–17

    Google Scholar 

  • Pott A, Pott VJ (2004) Features and conservation of the Brazilian Pantanal wetland. Wetlands Ecol Manag 12:547–552

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rabelo MTO, Arts K, Girard P, Ioris AAR, Figueiredo DM (2017) Percepção dos Atores Sociais do Turismo sobre o Pulso de Inundação do Pantanal (MT). Revista Brasileira de Ecoturismo 10(3):708–736

    Google Scholar 

  • Safford TG (2010) The political–technical divide and collaborative management in Brazil’s Taquari Basin. J Environ Dev 19(1):68–90

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sanecap. (2011) Proposta de Projetos: Plano de Metas e Ações de Saneamento Ambiental do Município de Cuiabá. Sanecap, Cuiabá

    Google Scholar 

  • Schulz C, Ioris AAR, Martin-Ortega J, Glenk K (2015) Prospects for payments for ecosystem services in the Brazilian Pantanal: a scenario analysis. J Environ Dev 24(1):26–53

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schulz C, Martin-Ortega J, Ioris AAR, Glenk K (2017) Applying a ‘value landscapes approach’ to conflicts in water governance: the case of the Paraguay-Paraná waterway. Ecol Econ 138:47–55

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schulz C, Ioris AAR (2017) The paradox of water abundance in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Sustainability 9(10):1796. https://doi.org/10.3390/su9101796

  • SEMA (State Environmental Protection Agency-Mato Grosso) (2010) Relatório de Monitoramento da Qualidade da Água da Região Hidrográfica do Paraguai – 2007 a 2009. Cuiabá, SEMA

    Google Scholar 

  • State of Mato Grosso (2009) Plano Estadual de Recursos Hídricos. Cuiabá, Mato Grosso State Government

    Google Scholar 

  • Swarts FA (ed) (2000) The Pantanal: understanding and preserving the world’s largest wetland. Paragon House, St Paul, MN

    Google Scholar 

  • TNC-WWF (2011) Ecological risk assessment for the Paraguay River Basin: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, and Paraguay. Brasilia, The Nature Conservancy and WWF-Brazil

    Google Scholar 

  • Tocantins MAC, Sousa WC Jr, Pereira PGP, Guimarães E, Lourival R (2006) Diagnóstico de Política e Economia Ambiental para o Pantanal. Megadiversidade 2(1–2):80–101

    Google Scholar 

  • Young OR, Berkhout F, Gallopin G, Janssen MA, Ostrom E, van der Leeuw S (2006) The globalization of socio-ecological systems: an agenda for scientific research. Glob Environ Chang 16:304–316

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zeilhofer P, Lima EBNR, Lima GAR (2010) Land use effects on water quality in the urban agglomeration of Cuiabá and Várzea Grande, Mato Grosso State, Central Brazil. Urban Water J 7(3):173–186

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This chapter is based on a previously published article by the author: Ioris, A. A. R. (2013). Rethinking Brazil’s Pantanal Wetland: Beyond Narrow Development and Conservation Debates. The Journal of Environment & Development, 22(3), 239–260. https://doi.org/10.1177/1070496513493276.

Reprinted with the kind permission of SAGE.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Geography and Planning, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Antonio Augusto Rossotto Ioris

Authors
  1. Antonio Augusto Rossotto Ioris
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Antonio Augusto Rossotto Ioris .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Ioris, A.A.R. (2020). Development and Conservation Frontiers in the Pantanal Wetland. In: Frontier Making in the Amazon. Key Challenges in Geography. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-38524-8_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation