Event Title
Palm Fiber Use in Artwork Exported from Amazonia: Local Exploitation, Abundance and Spatial Analysis of Astrocaryum chambira Near a Community Reserve in Peru
Presentation Type
Poster/Portfolio
Presenter Major(s)
Geography and Planning
Mentor Information
James Penn
Department
Geography and Planning
Location
Henry Hall Atrium 31
Start Date
10-4-2013 12:00 PM
End Date
10-4-2013 1:00 PM
Keywords
Information, Innovation, and Technology, Arts, Changing Ideas/Changing Worlds, Culture, Environment, Globalization, Sustainability
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to determine if Astrocaryum chambira palms are being sustainably harvested for fiber used to make artwork in northeastern Peru and what effect the 2012 Amazon flooding had on palm production. Two floodplain harvest areas were inventoried; old river levee fallow that was communally harvested and 18 small swidden-fallow gardens that were individually owned and harvested. The study area was mapped and analyzed with GIS. Statistics for the restinga palms were compared to garden statistics and with previous studies. Findings show that the A. chambira in the restinga had a higher density than findings from previous studies and had a significantly higher rate of harvest than the palms in the gardens. Flooding was significantly deeper in the gardens. If the artisans are going to sustain their artwork sales from palm fiber, they will need to reduce harvest rates on restinga palms and move their palm gardens to higher lands to reduce the risk of flood loss.
Palm Fiber Use in Artwork Exported from Amazonia: Local Exploitation, Abundance and Spatial Analysis of Astrocaryum chambira Near a Community Reserve in Peru
Henry Hall Atrium 31
The purpose of this study was to determine if Astrocaryum chambira palms are being sustainably harvested for fiber used to make artwork in northeastern Peru and what effect the 2012 Amazon flooding had on palm production. Two floodplain harvest areas were inventoried; old river levee fallow that was communally harvested and 18 small swidden-fallow gardens that were individually owned and harvested. The study area was mapped and analyzed with GIS. Statistics for the restinga palms were compared to garden statistics and with previous studies. Findings show that the A. chambira in the restinga had a higher density than findings from previous studies and had a significantly higher rate of harvest than the palms in the gardens. Flooding was significantly deeper in the gardens. If the artisans are going to sustain their artwork sales from palm fiber, they will need to reduce harvest rates on restinga palms and move their palm gardens to higher lands to reduce the risk of flood loss.