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Fishing for alternatives in Peru

January 27, 2015

Deforestation and gold mining waste are taking their toll on Peru’s lushly biodiverse Amazon Basin. In a bid to reverse the trend and earn a living, local communities are working with nature rather than against it.

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Making a living in the Amazon

Project goals: Strengthening indigenous communities through the development of susutainable sources of income.
Implementation: Fish breeding pools as an alternative source of income for indigenous communities. Eco-tourism and reforestation through the planting of banana trees.
Size: The EBA-Amazonia project is active in the Peruvian Amazon, specifically in the south-eastern part of the country, around the Amarakaeri nature reserve.
Investment: The International Climate Initiative (IKI) is supporting the project with 6.000.000 €.
Duration: 2013 - 2017

The Amarakaeri region in south-eastern Peru’s Amazon Basin is feeling the effects of environmental erosion. As deforestation continues apace, and mercury from surrounding goldmines contaminates waterways, residents can no longer depend on woodland and rivers for survival. There is, therefore, a desperate need to generate a new source of income, and fish farming just might be one solution. It is not only a potential lifeline for the local population, but stands to benefit the environment by drawing miners and forest workers into a different, cleaner sector.

A film by Carolina Chimoy