After the hydroelectric plant, we saw the impact.

From then on, fishing only decreased.

It is difficult. It’s tough.

Those who came to us at the Federal University of Amazonas

were fishermen from the city of Humaitá

who were suffering economic hardship,

but mainly environmental hardship
due to the construction of hydroelectric plants.

The data on which we work show us precisely

that those fish that are daily on the
plate of the riverine communities

such as pacu, such as jaraqui,
are the species most affected

by both environmental impact of hydroelectric plants,

as well as the environmental impact generated by mining sites

that are installed throughout the Madeira River Basin.

And they were feeling this not only in their pockets,

but experiencing it mainly on their food plate.

Fishing in Madeira before the dam was as follows:

We went out fishing and there were plenty of fish.

And today, no. Today it’s not possible.

Oh brother, today fishing is sad, you know?

When I fished 400, 500 kilos in my canoe,

that would be enough if you fished within five days at most,

and look, if not less.

And today it takes 12 days to bring that much.

I’ve been fishing since I was 13 years old.

To this day I still continue.

It’s difficult now, but from now on
we’ll see if we can do it, right?

It has been too hard… not easy, it’s not.

The construction itself creates
a non-homogeneous water balance

of the lake that generates energy

that causes a good part of the water pulse to be
disoriented throughout the 365 days of the year.

We have daily water changes.

So, arriving at the ruler in the morning indicates
10 meters (water level).

At the end of the day 18 meters,
starting the next day with 20.

When the fish realizes that the river is filling,

it will take shelter in places where it can lay its eggs,
lay its larvae,

take shelter so that it can reproduce.

But, if at the end of the day that drops violently,
what happens to those billions of eggs?

People come to buy chicken, because it is difficult
to catch fish in the community,

both in the lake and on the banks of the rivers.

One of the things that is still holding
the riverine community here is agriculture.

But fishing is almost non-existent.

Today what we see,
mainly in the social impact in the region,

that they tell us about today,

is this migration from fishing to other activities.

Legal and illegal activities.

The most prevalent ones are illegal activities, unfortunately.

The mining is right outside their house.
Deforestation is right there on their doorstep.

When I talk about illegal activities, we are talking
mainly about the grabbing of public lands,

carried out by people who do not
live in the Amazon region,

but who depend on people who live in the Amazon region
to “clean up” these areas,

for land grabbing.

So, they go in search of cheap labor in the region,
to promote deforestation.

We only have one thing to do at the moment:
keep telling everyone

that we will collapse the Madeira River.

It’s going to happen much sooner than we think.

We’re already at the limit.