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ABSTRACT
This article seeks to discuss the associations elaborated by riverine interlocutors between infrastructures and the landscape in which they occur, within the context of climate change in the Brazilian state of Amazonas. Here, we debate the relational character of infrastructures, and how they act as important markers of river seasonality, landscape, people’s existence, and practices from the perspective of the accessed riverine people. This paper’s discussion is supported by qualitative data from semi-structured interviews and field notes from two riverine communities in the Amazonas state: Tumbira and Lago do Catalão. Inspired by authors who dialogue with Social Studies of Science and Technology and discuss infrastructures, their effects, their relational and ontological character, we seek to identify entanglements of landscape and infrastructure, and their implications in the practices and ways of living of riverine Amazonian people. Elements such as gas pipelines, power transmission lines, hydroelectric plants, cargo ships, and highways emerge, affect, and are affected in these entangled landscapes in the eyes of the riverine people. They merge with other entanglements such as the rivers and creeks that perform the riverine landscape and life. Thus, they induce reflections on such relationships and the affectations permeated by fears, wishes, and (dis)trust of their operation.
RESUMO
Este artigo busca discutir as associações elaboradas pelos interlocutores ribeirinhos entre paisagem e infraestruturas no contexto das mudanças climáticas no estado do Amazonas. Debatemos o caráter relacional das infraestruturas, mas também como elas atuam como marcadoras da sazonalidade do rio, paisagem, práticas e existências sob os olhos dos ribeirinhos acessados. A discussão é apoiada em dados qualitativos oriundos de entrevistas semiestruturadas e notas de campo realizadas em duas comunidades ribeirinhas do estado do Amazonas: Tumbira e Lago do Catalão. Inspiradas por autoras que dialogam com os Estudos Sociais em Ciência e Tecnologia e discutem infraestruturas, seus efeitos, e seu caráter relacional e ontológico, buscamos identificar os emaranhados de infraestruturas e paisagem, e suas implicações nas práticas e modos de existir de ribeirinhos e ribeirinhas amazônidas. Elementos como gasodutos, linhões de transmissão de energia, navios cargueiros, hidrelétricas, e rodovias emergem, afetam e são afetados nesses emaranhados. Mesclam-se ainda a outros emaranhados: dos rios e igarapés que performam a paisagem e a vida ribeirinha. Assim, provocam reflexões sobre as afetações permeadas por medos, desejos e (des)confiança no funcionamento de tais infraestruturas.
RESUMEN
Este artículo busca discutir las asociaciones trazadas por interlocutores ribereños entre paisaje e infraestructura en el contexto del cambio climático en el estado de Amazonas. Debatimos el carácter relacional de las infraestructuras, pero también cómo actúan como marcadores de la estacionalidad del río, del paisaje, de las prácticas y de las existencias ante la mirada de los ribereños a los que se accede. La discusión se sustenta en datos cualitativos provenientes de entrevistas semiestructuradas y notas de campo realizadas en dos comunidades ribereñas del estado de Amazonas: Tumbira y Lago do Catalão. Inspirándonos en autores que dialogan con los Estudios Sociales de la Ciencia y la Tecnología y que discuten las infraestructuras, sus efectos y su carácter relacional y ontológico, buscamos identificar los entrelazamientos de las infraestructuras y el paisaje, y sus implicaciones para las prácticas y formas de existir de las ribereñas y los ribereños amazónicos. Elementos como gasoductos, líneas de transmisión eléctrica, buques de carga, hidroeléctricas y carreteras emergen, afectan y son afectados en estos entrelazamientos. También se fusionan con otros entrelazamientos: los ríos y arroyos que configuran el paisaje y la vida ribereña. Provocan así reflexiones sobre los afectos permeados por miedos, deseos y (des)confianza en el funcionamiento de tales infraestructuras.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank the riverine men and women who welcomed us into their communities. We also acknowledge funds from Brazil’s Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) scholarships and funding for field work (Grants CAPES-INPA/88881.154644/2017-01 and 23038.007722/2014-77), the Graduate Program in Sociology at UFRGS for supporting field research, the AmazonFACE Program, represented by Carlos Alberto Quesada (INPA) and David Lapola (Unicamp), and the technicians from the Fundação Amazônia Sustentável and the Amazonas State Secretariat for the Environment. We also thank the reviewers and editors who collaborated to refine the discussion of this work.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 A preview of this article was discussed in the theme session “Infrastructures and ecology in crisis: reflections from the present and future alliances,” of the VIII REACT – Reunião de Antropologia da Ciência e da Tecnologia (Meeting of Anthropology of Science and Technology), which was held online in November 2021. We thank the thematic seminar’s coordination and the fellow participants for the valuable exchanges.
2 Although Anna Tsing establishes this thought-provoking relationship between infrastructures and the idea of the Anthropocene, we point out that we will not dwell on it in depth at this time.
3 The Transamazônica highway (BR-230) is the longest federal highway in Brazil. Its construction in the 1970s, during the political period of the military dictatorship in Brazil, is surrounded by controversy. Its starting point is on the coast of the state of Paraíba, and after crossing six Brazilian states, it has its final point in the city of Lábrea, state of Amazonas. In all, there are 4997 kilometers of highway. Its original project envisaged a road twice as long, 8000 kilometers long, which would connect the Brazilian Atlantic coast and the Pacific coast of Peru and Ecuador.
4 Rf. Alberto Rangel, Inferno verde: cenas e cenários do Amazonas, 1908.
5 See images of advertising pieces and media coverage gathered in Ricardo Cardim’s research at https://bit.ly/3rErCB9 and recordings about the construction of the Transamazônica highway gathered by the National Museum at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPZ0h9yJ26M (video saved, oddly enough, on a channel called “automotive news”).
6 The term FACE is an acronym for “Free Air CO2 Enrichment,” a technology used in the research which characterizes it as unprecedented in a tropical forest. The structure that shelters this technology was set up in order to expose primary portions of the Amazon rainforest to a concentration of carbon dioxide of 200 ppm (parts per million) above the current one. And then, to analyze the effects and the ways in which the ecosystem reacts to the increase in CO2 both above and below ground, where there is an important network of microorganisms that interact with the roots. Thus, we seek to understand the role of this greenhouse gas in the scenario of climate change.
7 We chose to preserve the identity of the interlocutors by referencing them only by the initials of their names.
8 On the different practices of observing climate and weather on the part of scientists and local populations, and how, for the latter, weather is closely associated with individual life histories and work tasks, see Ingold and Kurttila (Citation2018).
9 We highlight the valuable critical contributions of researchers who question the “clean” character of hydroelectric energy sources (Fearnside Citation2001, Citation2011, Citation2015, Citation2019a, Citation2019b; Fleury and Almeida Citation2013; Zhouri Citation2012; Zhouri and Oliveira Citation2007), especially considering that they are infrastructures permeated by violation of human rights, territories, and high environmental impact. In addition, projection errors occur with relative recurrence regarding the scope of the flooding of the reservoir from the construction of the dams and even regarding the energy generation capacity, often becoming an underutilized infrastructure. The authors, however, preferred not to delve into such discussions in the present work.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Aline Radaelli
Aline Radaelli is a PhD candidate in Sociology (UFRGS), she holds a Master’s Degree in Sociology (UFAM) and a Bachelor’s Degree in Economic Sciences (ESALQ-USP). She is a member of TEMAS Group (Technology, Environment and Society) and of the AmazonFACE Program. Email: [email protected].
Júlia Menin
Júlia Menin is a PhD candidate in Sociology (UFRGS), she holds a Master’s Degree in Sociology (UFRGS) and a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences (UFRGS). She is a member of TEMAS Group (Technology, Environment and Society) and of the AmazonFACE Program. Email: [email protected].