"Slash and Burn" and "Shifting" Cultivation Systems in Forest Agriculture Frontiers from the Brazilian Amazon

We analyze changes in the extent of slash and burn cultivation (SBC) and shifting cultivation (SC) and the main drivers of change observed in the last 10 years across the Brazilian Amazon. Our results show that SC is stable in indigenous and caboclo communities from Amazonas and Acre. SBC increases...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Society & natural resources 2013-12, Vol.26 (12), p.1454-1467
Main Authors: van Vliet, Nathalie, Adams, Cristina, Vieira, Ima Célia Guimarães, Mertz, Ole
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agrarian Structures
Agricultural management
Agricultural production
Agricultural techniques
Agriculture
Amazon
Amazon region
Brazil
Brazilians
Deforestation
Environmental impact
forest frontiers
Forest management
Households
Indigenous Populations
Land Tenure
Land use
land use change
Land utilization
Markets
Native peoples
Population
Population Growth
Poverty relief
Production
Shifting cultivation
slash and burn
Small farms
smallholders
Social policy
Timber
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We analyze changes in the extent of slash and burn cultivation (SBC) and shifting cultivation (SC) and the main drivers of change observed in the last 10 years across the Brazilian Amazon. Our results show that SC is stable in indigenous and caboclo communities from Amazonas and Acre. SBC increases along new roads, illustrating how roads shape deforestation frontiers beyond the "arc of deforestation." In established forest frontiers, the conversion of forests into pasture or cash crops through SBC continues to increase locally, but smallholders' diversification strategies translate into complex land uses with both the increase and decrease of SBC and SC observed locally. Secure land tenure, access to markets, and population increase appear to be driving to the classic intensification path. Overall, access to cash transfer programs has helped stabilize forest frontiers as households become less reliant on subsistence agricultural production.
ISSN:0894-1920
1521-0723
DOI:10.1080/08941920.2013.820813