História ambiental da ferrugem asiática da soja no Brasil (2000)

Abstract

Asian soybean rust is a fungal disease that causes significant agricultural epidemics, severely impacting soybean production in various regions and consequently the environment, especially due to the limited knowledge that farmers had about the disease in its early stages. This study aims to understand the initial outbreaks of rust in Brazil in the 2000s, the year of its first record, and the economic and environmental consequences generated by this disease. Our intention is to analyze the management and control strategies adopted, as well as understand the implications for farmers and the environment. The methodological approach of this work is based on the characteristics of Environmental History, which uses a variety of sources to understand human actions in relation to the environment and engages in dialogue with other scientific fields, such as agronomy. The analysis will be conducted through historical and bibliographic sources, such as the "Dispersal Map" and the "Rust Cost, Information on the Occurrence of Asian Soybean Rust and Losses Due to the Disease in Soybean Crops" table, produced by the Anti-Rust Consortium, which identify the first affected locations and describe the problems faced by producers, in addition to presenting control costs and production losses. The presentations from the 2005/06 and 2006/07 Crop Meetings provide a detailed view of the concerns of technicians and the analyses conducted on the disease during these periods. Informative brochures produced to guide farmers constitute another valuable source, offering essential information about rust. Additionally, newspaper articles, such as the article "Rust attacks soybeans in 4 States" from the Folha de São Paulo newspaper (2004), will be crucial to identify the affected states and the costs related to the disease, especially in the 2004 crop season. With these sources, we intend to build a comprehensive narrative about the emergence and impact of Asian soybean rust in Brazil in the 2000s, contributing to a deeper understanding of the interactions between agriculture, the economy, and the environment.