WP5 “Policies for community managed fisheries, conservation of floodplain biodiversity and mitigation of climate impacts on smallholder communities and floodplain biodiversity”

We will integrate findings of the main components of the project (WPs 1-4) to inform the development and implementation of policies and institutional arrangements for the sustainable development of Lower Amazon fisheries, conserving floodplain biodiversity and mitigating climate impacts. We will integrate the WP1-4 results to inform the ongoing multi-stakeholder planning process for sustainable management of floodplain lake fisheries and conservation of floodplain habitat and biodiversity. The WP5 team will work with state and municipal Secretaries of Environment
(SEMAS), Secretaries of Agriculture and Fisheries (SEDAP), municipal Fishers’ Unions and other local stakeholder groups. In T5.1 we will work with state government agencies to develop and implement state co-management policies, based on existing community fishing agreements, to regulate fishing and land use on the lower Amazon floodplain. T5.2 will implement a new state law regulating the community-based management of the pirarucu (Arapaima spp.; historically, a major commercial species) in the Lower Amazon region. This management system has been shown to create local conditions that conserve floodplain habitat and biodiversity within lake systems that are actively managed for pirarucu and other commercial fish species. Within T5.3, we will organize meetings with floodplain community members to explore local perceptions of climate change and its impacts and the strategies they employ to mitigate the impacts of climate change. We will use results of other work packages, including agent-based modeling to develop workshops for community members to explore the consequences of extreme events, droughts and floods, for smallholder households and communities and the strategies they employ to mitigate and or adapt to these changes. In T5.4 we will build on the results of other SABERES Work Plans and collaborate with local government and floodplain stakeholders to develop a regional plan to conserve floodplain biodiversity and mitigate climate impacts on floodplain habitats.