March 28, 2014. A group of boys climb a tree on the Xingu River near the city of Altamira, Para State, Brazil. One third of the city will be permanently flooded and an estimated 20-40 thousand people displaced in the region once construction of the nearby Belo Monte Dam is complete. Belo Monte will be the third largest hydroelectric complex in the world.
[ EPF 2015 HONORABLE MENTION ]
Plans for what would eventually be called the Belo Monte Dam Complex began in 1975, under the apex of military dictatorship in Brazil. The dam would be built within the Xingu River basin, in the state of Para, home to Brazil’s first indigenous reserve. In 1989 the Kayapo, a warrior tribe who feared for the health of the river that was the centre of their lives, mounted a massive public campaign in opposition of its construction. International financiers soon pulled their support, and the project was shelved.
March 18, 2014. A tire fire is extinguished during a protest by fisherman who have occupied the entrance to the Belo Monte construction site. The fisherman were there to demand compensation for the impacts to their waters, fish and livelihoods.
NOVEMBER 26, 2014. A Munduruku tribal member rests on a sandbar during a protest against plans to construct a series of hydroelectric dams on the Tapajos River in the Amazon rainforest in Para State, Brazil. The protesters used rocks to write ‘Tapajos Livre’ (Free Tapajos) in a large message in the sand that was photographed from the air in an action coordination with Greenpeace. The Munduruku live traditionally along the river and depend on fishing and the river system for their livelihood. The Brazilian government is planning to build a series of dams in the region that will flood indigenous lands and national parks including Munduruku villages. Brazil is planning over 60 Dams for the Amazon Rainforest. The dams are part of Brazil’s Growth Acceleration Programme (PAC), which also includes a rapid expansion of mining in the Amazon.
December 4, 2014. A family from the traditional riparian village of Mangabal on the Tapajos River. The village is threatened by the construction of a major hydroelectric complex consisting of seven dams that would flood their land forcing them to move to the nearby city of Itaituba.
March 05, 2014. Cranes are seen at the construction site of the Belo Monte dam on the Xingu River. The dam will be the third largest in the world and will drain a huge portion of the river called the Big Bend impacting a number of communities and tribes. It is expected to displace between 20 and 40 thousand people.
December 4, 2014. A campaign poster for Brazilian President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva is seen in the traditional riparian village of Mangabal on the Tapajos River. The village is threatened by the construction of a major hydroelectric complex consisting of seven dams that would flood their land forcing them to move to the nearby city of Itaituba.
March 8, 2014. A girl stands in her flooded house in Invasao dos Padres, a neighbourhood in Altamira that will be permanently flooded by the Belo Monte Dam. The dam is expected to displace between 20 and 40 thousands people.
NOVEMBER 26, 2014. A group of Munduruku tribal members use a computer during an occupation of the FUNAI offices (Brazil’s National Indian Foundation) in Itaituba, Para, Brazil. The occupation was in protest to the fact that FUNAI has refused to publish official documents that would officially recognize Munduruku traditional territory. If recognized, flooding of the territory by new hydroelectric development would be illegal under Brazilian Law.
April 8, 2014. Neto fans the flames while building a canoe in the Riozinho do Anfrisio Extractavist Reserve. Extractavists have lived in the forests for generations descending from the rubber tappers that once fed Brazils rubber boom. Today live along the river banks with an economy based on harvesting sustainable natural products such as latex, nuts, and oils. The Riozinho do Anfrisio is a tributary to the Xingu River. The direct and indirect impacts to this area from the Belo Monte dam are not fully understood.
March 18, 2014. Executives from Norte Energia, the consortium building the Belo Monte Dam, stand behind National Force soldiers before negotiating with a group of fisherman who have occupied the entrance to the Belo Monte construction site to protest the impacts to their waters, fish and livelihoods.
March 18, 2014. A protest by fisherman who have occupied the entrance to the Belo Monte construction site. The fisherman were there to demand compensation for the impacts to their waters, fish and livelihoods caused by the Dams construction.
March 4, 2014. Residents of Altamira who now live along the river will be resettled here in the district of Jatoba, built by Notre Energia, the consortium building the Belo Monte Dam, due to permanent flooding of their neighbourhoods caused by the Belo Monte Dam. The company originally promised larger houses built from brick that would remain cooler in the tropical temperatures, but were instead given these concrete ones. One third of the city will be permanently flooded by the dam.
In 2007, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced the Accelerated Growth Program (PAC), the largest investment package to spur economic growth in Brazil in the past 40 years. A cornerstone of this program is the industrialization of the Amazon, which includes the construction of over 60 major Hydroelectric projects over a 15 year period. Belo Monte is at the forefront. The energy generated from these projects will fuel mining initiatives within the Amazon rainforest and power cities thousands of miles away. Now nearing completion, Belo Monte is soon to be the third largest dam in the world, and is expected to displace between 20-40,000 people. On the neighbouring Tapajos River, the Munduruku tribe are fighting to prevent a similar fate; the next mega-dam is already planned.
Hydroelectric dams are touted as clean and renewable sources of energy, but the real impact of large dams is often anything but. Hundreds of square miles of land are flooded and complex river ecosystems permanently transformed. In the Amazon, new infrastructure and population growth opens the forests to increased logging, mining, and agriculture. The end result is the erosion of the Amazon Rainforest and the sacrifice of cultures and communities who depend on the river and forest ecosystems for their way of life.
This is a long-term document of the people of the Amazon Rainforest as they face the challenges of environmental and social transformation.
March 14, 2014. A family moves their belonging out of their flooded home in Invasao dos Padres, a neighbourhood in Altamira that will be permanently flooded by the Belo Monte Dam.
Feb 19, 2014. A Xikrin warrior is painted in the village of “Pot cr.” The Xikrin are part of the Kayapo tribe that have strongly resisted the Belo Monte dam. They live on the banks of the Rio Bacaja, the name meaning “the water that runs in river is the same as the blood that flows through our veins.” The Bacaja is a tributary of the Xingu River which the people depend upon for fish and transportation. It is expected to severely dry up after the dam is completed.
December 11, 2014. A spider monkey is hunted for food by the Munduruku indigenous people of the village of Sawre Muybu on the Tapajos River. The Munduruku are currently fighting against government plans to construct a number of major hydroelectric dams on the Tapajos River that would flood much of their traditional lands in Para State, Brazil.
November 29, 2014. An artisan gold miner or “garimpeiro” is loaded in to the back of a police truck after he died in an accident while working along the Tapajos River in Para, Brazil. Illegal and artisan gold mining is one of the main industries along many of the rivers in the Amazon. It’s a dangerous job, but many of the miners worry that once the hydroelectric dams are completed, large mining companies will proliferate in the area and put locals out of work. While artisan gold mining is damaging to the environment, industrial mines pose an even greater threat.
NOVEMBER 26, 2014. A member of the Munduruku indigenous tribe sits on bags of sugar and rice during an occupation of the FUNAI offices (Brazil’s National Indian Foundation) in Itaituba. The occupation was in protest to the fact that FUNAI has refused to publish official documents that would recognize Munduruku traditional territory. If recognized, flooding of the territory by new hydroelectric development would be illegal under Brazilian Law.
December 11, 2014. A Munduruku family watch Brazilian Soap Operas in the village of Sawre Muybu. Although living off the land on their traditional territory, the villages have generators, fridges and televisions provided to them by government and industry hoping to win their support. The Munduruku are currently fighting against government plans to construct a number of hydroelectric dams on the Tapajos River in the Amazon rainforest that would flood much of their traditional lands in Para State, Brazil.
April 5, 2014. Veia balances her child who she and her husband David, left, have yet to name in their home on the Extractavist Reserve of Riozinho do Anfrsio. Extractavists have lived in the forests for generations descending from the rubber tappers that once fed Brazils rubber boom. Today they live along the river banks with an economy based on harvesting sustainable natural products such as latex, nuts, and oils. The Riozinho do Anfrisio is a tributary to the Xingu River. The direct and indirect impacts to this area from the Belo Monte dam are not fully understood.
February 20, 2014. A child from the Xikrin village of “Pot cr” stands for a photo on the banks of the Rio Bacaja, its name meaning “the water that runs in river is the same as the blood that flows through our veins.” The Xikrin are a warrior tribe that have strongly resisted the dam and will most likely be displaced by it when their river drys up.
NOVEMBER 27, 2014. A headdress and bow and arrow of the Munduruku indigenous tribe rests on the beach of So Luiz do Tapajs during the ‘Caravan of Resistance’ protest against government plans to construct a series of hydroelectric dams that will flood traditional lands on the Tapajos river in the Amazon rainforest in Para State, Brazil. Brazil is planning over 60 new dams for the Amazon Basin.
February 19, 2014. A child from the Xikrin village of “Pot cr” jumps into the Rio Bacaja, its name meaning “the water that runs in the river is the same as the blood that flows through our veins.” The Bacaja is a tributary of the Xingu River which the Xikrin depend upon for fish and transportation. It will be severely dewatered by the Belo Monte Dam threatening the Xikrin’s ability to live there.
NOVEMBER 26, 2014. Members of the Munduruku indigenous tribe are seen on the Tapajos River in preparation for a protest against plans to construct a series of hydroelectric dams on the river in the Amazon rainforest in Para State, Brazil. The tribe members used the rocks to write ‘Tapajos Livre’ (Free Tapajos) in a large message in the sand in an action in coordination with Greenpeace. The Munduruku live traditionally along the river and depend on fishing and the river system for their livelihood. The Brazilian government is planning to build a series of dams in the region that will flood indigenous lands and national parks including Munduruku villages. Brazil is planning over 60 Dams for the Amazon Rainforest. The dams are part of Brazil’s Growth Acceleration Programme (PAC), which also includes a rapid expansion of mining in the Amazon.
Bio
Aaron Vincent Elkaim was born in 1981 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the historic heart of the Canadian Fur Trade where the Red and Assiniboine rivers meet. The river has underscored his work both metaphorically and literally as it concerns moments of human transition in relation to environmental change. Informed by his countries colonialist history, he is drawn to narratives that explore the nuances of history, culture and oppression.
In 2014, Aaron won Gold in the Society of Designers Publication Awards for a commission about the culture of the Iditarod dogsled race in Alaska for the New Yorker Magazine. He was the recipient of the 2012 Daylight Photo Award, Best Personal Essay, Photo District News Annual (2010), and has been recognized by the Oskar Barnak Award (2014), American Photography (26,27,29), Anthropographia (2012), the Magenta Foundation (2013, 2014), and the Lucie Foundation (2010), among others. He work has been exhibited internationally.
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Aaron Vincent Elkaim
Aaron,
This is an impressive and very welcome project. Your photography is well done and interesting, your analysis and understanding are thoughtful and penetrating, and your heart is clearly in the right place. I wish you luck, and the perseverance you will need against the powerful who constantly seek to dam and to pollute the earth’s rivers, and I hope you keep following the course of this and other rivers.
i love this project so much….and a finer, stronger, more sensitive and caring individual than Aaron you would be hard pressed to find!
This is great. Congrats!
very nice… strong and sensitive …
I love it.
Congratulations!