Environmental Impacts - Brazil

Brazil's coastline boasts a great variety of habitats and plays host to a wealth of biological diversity, both in the water and on land. But, with approximately two thirds of Brazil's inhabitants living no more than 100km from the coast, there is great developmental pressure exerted on the coastal ecosystems. The rapid expansion of shrimp farming and the associated conversion of huge areas, particularly mangroves, into shrimp ponds, is exacerbating an already fragile situation.

The Brazilian coast extends over 7,000km and encompasses many ecosystems of high ecological and economic importance. Amidst the great diversity of landscapes in the northeast are coral reefs, estuaries, sand dunes and mangrove forests. Diverse mangrove ecosystems cover approximately 1.3million ha - about half of the total mangrove cover in the Americas - and extend along almost the entire coast of Brazil. Although Brazilian mangrove forests are believed to contain relatively few tree species, they are home to a large and varied fauna - more than 140 species of birds, 220 species of fish and hundreds of species of terrestrial and marine invertebrates are associated with these habitats. In Bahia, the Atlantic Forest (recognised internationally as a critically endangered ecoregion), is intricately associated with some mangroves.

The Timonha estuary, the last well-preserved mangrove forest in Ceará, provides refuge for endangered species like the manatee, and big cats such as jaguars and pumas.

The Atlantic coast of Brazil is also an important region for migratory birds travelling to wintering grounds such as Tierra del Fuego, at the southernmost tip of South America. Brazilian coastal areas also provide feeding and/or nesting grounds for five species of marine turtle: the Green, Loggerhead, Olive Ridley, Leatherback and Hawksbill (the latter two being critically endangered whilst the others are endangered).

Bird species found in mangroves include parakeets, the orange-winged parrot and the scarlet ibis. Mangroves, globally, provide feeding and spawning grounds for a host of fish species, including those of commercial importance, and Brazil is no different. The Lined Seahorse, which feeds and reproduces in mangrove areas such as the Rio Jaguaribe estuary, is recognised internationally as being vulnerable to extinction. In Ceará, the Goliath Grouper, is more abundant in estuaries with well-preserved mangroves. With slow growth rates and a slow reproductive rate, this commercial fish species is critically endangered and loss of mangrove as a resource for its juvenile stage will have a negative impact.

Another species of particular conservation importance in the north and northeast of Brazil is the manatee, Trichechus manatus. This species of marine mammal, found also in the south-eastern US and the Caribbean, is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild. In Brazil, an estimated population of just 460 animals exists in the north and northeast of the country. Once hunted commercially for their meat, manatees are now protected at the international level, but their long-term survival is still threatened by several factors including destruction of their coastal wetland habitat, and clearing of mangroves, including for shrimp farm development. Manatees live an entirely underwater existence, and are herbivorous. Feeding on seagrass and other aquatic vegetation, they must stay in shallow coastal waters, estuaries, or rivers, where food is abundant. But it is this requirement for coastal habitats that is putting them at risk.

"In September 2004, I was part of the EJF team working with Terramar in Ceará to gather video evidence of the problems caused by shrimp farms. It was truly shocking to witness the destruction of mangrove and carnauba forests along Ceará's coastline as shrimp farming operations in the region massively expand. Our footage reveals how huge construction sites have replaced once intact ecosystems as shrimp farms are built, often illegally or with the connivance of the authorities. Vast areas are simply being bulldozed with no thought for the people or wildlife they sustain."

In Ceará, shrimp farming and trawling activities are thought to be the principle causes of negative impacts to coastal biodiversity, coastal productivity, and fisheries recruitment. Shrimp farming impacts both directly and indirectly on mangrove ecosystems, with knock-on effects on the biodiversity which relies on them. Although prohibited by Brazilian legislation, destruction of mangrove forests continues in some areas. In the case of the Timonha Estuary, controversial licences have enabled shrimp farm development even in protected areas. Moreover, the complexity of mangrove ecosystems, beyond the stands of trees, is only just beginning to be understood. The interactions with associated estuarine and marine waters, as well as salt flats and marshes means that protection of the mangrove forest is potentially insufficient if the valuable functions of the entire ecosystem are to be maintained. For example, apicuns are areas of sandy soil periodically flooded by the sea. Whilst they are covered only in a carpet of algae and bacteria with almost no vegetation, they form an integral, if transitional, part of the mangrove system. Yet, in the case of Ceará, a large proportion of shrimp farming companies are located in apicuns.

Further, although a wealth of ecology and biodiversity is recognised, Brazilian marine systems remain largely unstudied. Over and above the negative impacts being highlighted at present, unregulated expansion and irresponsible conduct by the shrimp farming industry can generate costs, the realities of which may only emerge once it is too late.