Sustentabilidade apícola no semiárido brasileiro: desempenho favorável de sistemas apícolas migratórios em detrimento de fixistas.

Abstract

The conduction of livestock and agricultural systems on a sustainable basis has been demanded nowadays, particularly when internal and/or external threats have contributed to avoid triggering unsustainable paths. Such situation can be complicated by the climatic variability, the reality of the brazilian Semiarid. In this environment, highlighting the beekeeping segment, developed through of fixed beekeeping and migratory beekeeping, whose understandings about the environmental, social and economic dimensions need to be scientifically substantiated and compared. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate comparatively the level of sustainability of fixed and migratory beekeeping systems in the semiarid environment of Brazil, against application the Framework for the Evaluation of Natural Resource Management Systems incorporating Sustainability Indicators (MESMIS). This research, characterized qualitative and quantitative, was conducted by MESMIS in period 2017 and 2018. This application was possible by the harmonization of the theoretical contribution, semistructured interviews, laboratory analyzes, photographic records and direct observation of the researchers. Thus, 19 beekeeping systems (15 fixed and 4 migratory) were selected and characterized, whose primary and secondary database allowed the identification of nine critical points (public assistance, associativism, autonomy, capacity, management, landscape quality, quality of life, beekeeping productivity and climatic variability), as well as the proposition of 25 indicators. These indicators were measured according to a scale of grades (0 and 3) and weighted based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), generating subscripts and indexes against normalizations. The systematization of results considered the attributes of sustainability, the diagnostic criteria and the dimensions of sustainability. Considering the theoretical and methodological support adopted, this study concludes that the migratory beekeeping system presented a more favorable performance than the fixed one (stable situation) with a significant difference (p < 0.01), a result of high autonomy, of permanent beekeeping pasture and without the use of pesticides, low loss of beehives, considerable productivity of honey and financial security. These aspects were evidenced with fragility by the fixed beekeeping systems. Therefore, this scenario suggests that the proposed limitations be corrected together by the public power, private initiatives, educational institutions, community organizations and beekeeping families, enabling the reduction of future unsustainable risks and the consolidation of beekeeping as a sustainable activity for the brazilian Semiarid.