Indigenous Agroforestry in Latin America: a Blueprint for Sustainable Agriculture?

INDIGENOUS AGROFORESTRY IN LATIN AMERICA: A BLUEPRINT FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE? NRI Socio-economic Series 6 DBarton NATURAL RESOURCES INSTITUTE Overseas Development Administration © Crown Copyright 1994 The Natural Resources Institute (NRI) is an internationally recognized centre of expertise on the natural resources of developing countries. It forms an integral part of the British Government's overseas aid programme. Its principal aim is to alleviate poverty and hardship in developing countries by increasing the productivity of their renewable natural resources. NRI' s main fields of expertise are resource assessment and farming systems, integrated pest management, food science and crop utilization. NRI carries out research and surveys; develops pilot-scale plant, machinery and processes; identifies, prepares, manages and executes projects; provides advice and training; and publishes scientific and development material. Short extracts of material from this publication may be reproduced in any non-advertising, non-profit-making context provided that the source is acknowledged as follows: Barton, D. (1994) Indigenous Agroforestry in Latin America: A Blueprint for Sustainable Agriculture? NRI Socio-economic Series 6. Chatham, UK: Natural Resources Institute. Permission for commercial reproduction should be sought No charge is made for single copies of this publication sent from: to governmental and educational establishments, research institutions and non-profit-making organizations working The Head, Publishing and Publicity Services, in countries eligible for British Government Aid. Free copies Natural Resources Institute, Central Avenue, cannot be addressed to individuals by name but only under Chatham Maritime, Kent, ME4 4TB, United Kingdom. their official titles. Please quote SES6 when ordering. Natural Resources Institute ISBN: 0 85954 373-0 This publication is printed on chlorine-free paper. ISSN: 0967-0548 Price £5.00 ii Other titles in the NRI Socio-economic Series Needs Assessment for Agricultural Development: Practical Issues in Informal Data Collection (SESl) Commercialization of Non-timber Forest Products in Amazonia (SES2) The Allocation of Labour to Perennial Crops: Decision-making by African Smallholders (SES3) The Use of Geographical Information Systems in Socio-economic Studies (SES4) Gender Issues in Integrated Pest Management in African Agriculture (SESS) (Please contact Publishing and Publicity Services at NRI for titles to be published in 1994) Contents FOREWORD vi BENEFITS OF SWIDDEN AGRICULTURE 11 Sustainability 11 Productivity 11 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi Biodiversity 11 Soil conservation 12 Flexibility 12 GLOSSARY vi Population density 12 Use of native species 12 SUMMARY vii RECENT AGROFORESTRY RESEARCH 13 Annual Cropping Research, Yurimaguas, Peru 13 INTRODUCTION 1 Northwest Brazil Integrated Development Programme 13 FOREST DESTRUCTION AND British Tropical Agricultural Mission, Bolivia 14 ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION 1 The Coca Agroforestry Project, Equador 14 Brazil 1 Ecuador 2 BLUEPRINT FOR COLONIST AGRICULTURE? 14 Peru 2 Transferable elements 15 Bolivia 2 Limiting factors 15 Research priorities 16 SWIDDEN AGRICULTURE 3 Indigenous subsistence agroforestry 3 CONCLUSIONS 17 Case 1. Bora agroforestry 3 Case 2. Kayapo agroforestry 4 Case 3. Ka' apor agroforestry 5 REFERENCES 19 Case 4. Amuesha agroforestry 6 Market-orientated agroforestry 6 FURTHER READING 22 Case 5. Huastec agroforestry 6 Case 6. Ribereiio agroforestry 7 Case 7. Santa Rosa agroforestry 8 Case 8. Ribereiio floodplain agroforestry 8 Case 9. Ar;ai palm forest systems 9 Case 10. Caboclo agroforestry 10 Case 11. Japanese agroforestry systems 10 V Foreword Glossary This series is based upon work carried out under the socio Agroforestry Agricultural systems where trees and economics research programme at NRI. Its purpose is to shrubs are deliberately combined with provide an easily accesible medium for current research crops and/ or livestock on the same findings. Whilst it is hoped that the series will be of interest unit of land to those concerned with development issues worldwide, Amerindians Indigenous peoples of Latin America it may be of particular relevance to people working in Barbecho Cleared forest land abandoned to bush the developing countries. regrowth The topics covered by the series are quite diverse, Caboclo Brazilian of mixed parentage but principally relate to applied and adaptive research (Amerindian/ European/ African) New colonists Migrants who have settled in the activity and findings. Some papers are largely descriptive, frontier forests since the 1960s others concentrate on analytical issues, or relate to research Swidden Traditional subsistence agroforestry methodologies. system practised by the Amerindians The aim is to present material in as straightforward which includes cutting and burning a fashion as possible so that it can reach a wide audience. small plots of forest for crop We are interested in the views and opinions of readers and production, followed by long-term welcome any feedback to this series. £allowing of the land Ribeirinhos Brazilians of mixed race origin AlanMarter inhabiting the flood plains Socio-economics Research Programme Riberefios Peruvian descendants of Amerindians and immigrants, usually riverside dwellers Crops Acknowledgements A~ai palm Euterpe oleracea Cacao Cocoa - Theobroma cacao Caimito Pouteria caimito Cassava Manioc - Manihot esculenta This literature review was funded by the Natural Resources Cupa Cissus gongylodes Research Department of the Overseas Development Macambo Theobroma bicolor Administration (ODA). However, the views and analysis Taro Cocoyam - Colocasia esculenta do not necessarily represent those of either NRI or ODA. Ulvilla Pourouma cecropiaefolia The author would like to thank Dr James Fairhead for Umari Poraqueiba sericia comments on an earlier version of this paper. Urucu Bixa orellana vi crops and forest products and the changes in government policy required to implement these methods. Summary The review concludes that indigenous agroforestry systems are both ecologically and economically beneficial, but are not without some limitations. From the wealth of Large-scale rainforest destruction in Latin America has indigenous knowledge available and proposed new occurred partly as a result of government policy incentives research, it should be possible to adapt these systems to to colonize and clear forest for agriculture and ranching, produce a model or blueprint for sustainable and produc in order to alleviate poor economic and social conditions tive agriculture for the new colonist. in other regions. Inappropriate agricultural techniques have been used which are not sustainable, and the new Indigenous Agroforestry in Latin America: A Blueprint for colonist farmers are forced to clear ever more virgin forest Sustainable Agriculture? will not only be of interest to policy for agriculture in order to survive. makers and donor agencies, but also to those interested in The objectives of this literature review are to assess the preservation of the rainforests. the value of the traditional subsistence agroforestry (swidden) systems practised over centuries by the indige nous people of Latin America (Amerindians), and to suggest ways of incorporating these methods into a sustain able (non-destructive) and productive system for the new colonist farmers. In the past, researchers perceived these swidden methods as an exploitative and destructive form of agriculture, because they involved cutting and burning of the forest. However, clearings are small, and planting and protection of trees after the initial cultivation of annual crops aids the forest regrowth in the fallow phase. Specific examples of swidden agroforestry systems are described, and their contribution to sustainability, biodiversity, productivity for market, soil conservation, flexibility and population density support are discussed. Overall, they are found to be less destructive and more productive than the new colonist agriculture, and should form a basis for a sustainable system. The review then outlines the possibilities for and limits (often labour intensive, location-specific and socio economic constraints) to the adoption of these methods by new colonist farmers. Suggestions are made for research priorities to enable their effective transfer, including thor ough documentation of existing systems and their capacity, participatory field research, the marketing potential for vii Introduction Forest destruction and environmental degradation Improving the sustainability of the use of natural resources and the maintenance of biodiversity in Latin America is an urgent priority in order to reduce tropical rainforest Smallholder settlement of the Amazon Basin forests has destruction. Although traditional Amerindian agroforestry been driven by a combination of government policy incen has been documented, there have been few attempts to tives, and the prevailing socio-economic conditions which assess its potential as a model or blueprint for sustainable generate shortages of suitable land for cultivation in the production systems. home regions of the settlers. Forest colonization has been The objectives of this literature review are to assess: encouraged without, in the majority of cases, comple mentary programmes to promote sustainable agricultural (a) the value of traditional systems in terms of their practices. Indeed, as the examples from Brazil, Ecuador, sustainability, biodiversity, and livelihood;

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