The Agrarian Question and Water in Brazil(2011-2018 (in Portuguese)

This work analyzes the data published by the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT), in the

period 2011-2018, regarding conflicts in the countryside involving the issue of water. The

numbers show the conflicts, the types of situations and the families involved; presenting

the main hydrographic basins where they occurred. The situations portray the reality of

the organized portion of the rural population, which participates in networks of struggle

and resistance for the conquest and against the loss of rights. The document treats

access to water as a Human Right and considers it a vital asset for all living beings.

Another aspect is that the analyzes cannot be restricted to the volumes captured or

missing, the loss of quality; As this study shows, it is important to include the land

issue, as its resolution is a means of guaranteeing effective access to water. The work

is organized into four sessions: the first is on water and the CPT report; the second

the work methodology; the third shows the organization of data, the dynamics of

conflicts, actors involved, highlights watersheds with the greatest number of conflicts;

and the fourth analyzes and discusses the data. The information makes clear the

link between environmental and water damage in agricultural, mineral and energy

production processes, and reveals the unity between production, land issues and water,

as components of the environmental problem. Furthermore, it reaffirms the importance

of CPT data for studies related to water, environment and land issues, which deserve

to be incorporated into the plans and management of hydrographic basins. However,

water management cannot be restricted to conflicts over the appropriation of water in

the “formal” or “visible” sector. It is not just the appropriation of water that generates

the conflict, but the use and occupation of land and territory, which will influence the

quality and volumes available. Faced with climate change, it is necessary to regulate

land use and occupation, recognize the right to land and territory, and implement zoning

that promotes territorial, environmental and productive planning, which guarantees

socioeconomic inclusion based on agroecological production.