Análise dos problemas e objetivos das atividades econômicas tradicionais e emergentes na zona costeira do Estado do Ceará

Abstract

The coastal ecosystems generate benefits to present and future generations of the coastal zone around the world. The accelerated urban growth and the economic dynamism in those regions lead to crescent dependency upon the natural resources and higher interdependency among the productive sectors. These relations also create conditions to the appearance of conflicts for natural resource access and use. This research has as objectives to identify and to describe the main socio-environmental conflicts that occur in the Coastal Zone of Ceará, having as basis the perceptions of diverse stakeholders. In this study, we used qualitative and participatory approaches – interviews and focus groups – in order to gather information to build the Image of the Present (problems and their causes) and the Vision of the Future (desired situation and strategies) for the relevant socio-environmental issues in the coastal zone. Relying on the stakeholder perceptions, we could stress that the main conflicts in the coastal zone are diversified and are related to the following activities: agriculture and land structure; fisheries and aquaculture; and tourism and real estate speculation. The stakeholders emphasized that participation and sustainability are key issues to be considered in the integrated coastal zone management.