The floodplains along the banks of the Amazon River and its tributaries are home to a diverse array of plant and animal species.  This unique ecosystem is currently under threat from commercial fishing, large-scale water buffalo ranches, rice plantations, and logging operations.

The Floodplain Resources Management Project ($17.5 million) aims to promote the conservation and rational use of this ecosystem, with an emphasis on fisheries and other aquatic wildlife.

This five-year project supports three types of activities:

• studies of key issues (e.g., communal management of fisheries, the impact of ranching and farming in the floodplain, priority areas for conservation);
   
• promoting promising initiatives for sustainable management of the floodplains by financing local conservation and development projects; and
   
• testing new approaches to monitoring resource use and enforcing environmental policies, e.g., involving local fishing communities in floodplain protection.