Análise da sustentabilidade em municípios produtores do açaí (Euterpe oleracea Mart.), na Região Norte do Brasil

Abstract

The production of açaí (Euterpe oleracea Mart.) in the Amazon has undergone changes in the cultivation model since 1990, ranging from family extraction to intensively managed cultivation, which has resulted in changes in the sócio-environmental and economic scenarios. Thus, this research aimed to evaluate sustainability in ten municipalities with the largest production of açaí in the state of Pará. For this purpose, data were collected from the database of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), and an index was applied to assess sustainability, the Dashboard of Sustainability, which was composed of 31 sustainability indicators divided into three dimensions: social, environmental, and economic. The index comprised 14 indicators of the social sphere, 12 environmental indicators, and five economic indicators. The results showed variations in the three dimensions, with more unfavorable results about fulfilling sustainability goals. For all municipalities, the Dashboard of Sustainability index ranged from 20 to 60, generally classifying the condition as “Medium” or “Poor”. The worst score on the index was for the municipality of Igarapé Miri, while the best score was for Barcarena. These results provide a diagnosis of the main açaí-producing municipalities that can contribute to public management in improving the performance of sustainability indicators to address sócio-environmental and economic challenges in the region.