Campaign asks for donations for extractivists in Acre – 03/29/2024 – Daily Life

After the historic flood that hit Acre in February, extractivists in the Chico Mendes reserve have suffered the impacts of the incident until now, mainly due to the lack of food and loss of production, according to the committee that represents the workers.

In view of this, non-profit organizations are mobilizing a donation campaign, which seeks to help around 700 affected families in Xapuri – the municipality where the Casa de Chico Mendes is located, listed in 2011 and today under the responsibility of Iphan (Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage). ).

Ângela Mendes, daughter of Chico Mendes and president of the committee named after her father, highlights that she promotes the campaign, together with other organizations, as she notes that some populations, such as extractivists, are the most vulnerable to the consequences of climate change.

“We saw the need to organize this campaign looking at the difficulties and the reality of climate extremes that are affecting everyone, especially the populations that are in the most invisible places, outside public policies”, he stated.

Ângela said she follows the legacy of the rubber tapper, who died in 1988, in keeping the forest standing and protecting traditional populations. For the activist, the humanitarian aid offered by the federal and state governments and the city hall is not enough to minimize the damage caused to rural workers.

“What the public authorities do in this case is allocate basic food baskets, but this is insufficient. It is necessary to look through public exemption policies, delay credits, because especially in the situation of those who had production and lost, thinking about survival, they will need of medium and long-term support until this production is reestablished”, he declared.

The committee reported that more than 200 families were left homeless after the flood. Ângela also asks for assistance aimed at the mental health of extractivists, who suffer from losses every year from their production to their homes.

“This year’s flood was the most intense than in 2023. And in less than a year, we have this recurrence again, which is why I think it is very urgent to bring this debate to look at this reality considering economic aspects, environmental and social issues, with a focus on people’s recovery and including this issue of mental health”, he continued.

The river’s flood in 2024 led 19 of Acre’s 22 municipalities to enter a state of emergency. Among the most affected are Brasileia, Assis Brasil, Marechal Thaumaturgo, Santa Rosa do Purus and Jordão – the last two with 80% and 70% of the total populations made up of indigenous peoples, respectively, who were isolated. Three people died from drowning as a result of the flood and, in total, more than 120 people were injured.

Another issue emphasized by the Chico Mendes Committee is deforestation in the reserve, which further worsens the climate crisis.

In a statement, ICMBio (Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation) said that, in addition to the high level that the waters rose, the places that suffered most from the flood were those where the riparian forest was degraded.

The lost areas of production, according to ICMBio, exceed 1,000 hectares, where cassava, rice, beans and banana crops are mainly located. The institute stated that 1,440 basic food baskets will be made available to 720 families residing in the reserve.

Regarding actions against deforestation in the unit, ICMBio cited that Prodes (Project for Monitoring Deforestation in the Legal Amazon by Satellite) indicates that in 2023, there was a reduction of 54%.

The institute reported that the Chico Mentes Reserve is a priority in the PPCDAm (Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Legal Amazon) and, in addition to command and control, increased inspection actions, recovery of degraded areas and incentives for bioeconomy chains.

The state government reported that it sent basic food baskets, 2-liter mineral water units and cleaning kits to the population of Xapuri, totaling 6 thousand people benefiting. The Executive also highlighted that it cleaned the city, removing debris that was scattered around.

Xapuri city hall reported that it serves populations in urban and rural areas that were affected. The municipality said it set up shelters in public schools, gyms and hotels, offering food and social assistance. The “Return home” operation was also carried out for families, who were able to return to their homes, and 22 families still receive social rent and can be included in the list of popular homes, which will be delivered by the city hall.

To make donations to the affected families, the Chico Mendes Committee provides the pix key 42.027.188/0001-01(CNPJ).