Rio Cajari Extractive Reserve
| Rio Cajari Extractive Reserve | |
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| Reserva Extrativista do Rio Cajari | |
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IUCN category VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources)
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| Nearest city | Mazagão, Amapá |
| Coordinates | 0°41′27″S 51°58′37″W / 0.690871°S 51.976979°WCoordinates: 0°41′27″S 51°58′37″W / 0.690871°S 51.976979°W |
| Area | 501,771 hectares (1,239,900 acres) |
| Designation | Extractive reserve |
| Created | 12 March 1990 |
| Administrator | Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation |
The Rio Cajari Extractive Reserve (Portuguese: Reserva Extrativista do Rio Cajari) is an extractive reserve in the state of Amapá, Brazil. It protects an region of dense rainforest, cerrado fields and flooded riparian zones that is rich in biodiversity. Formerly it was used for rubber extraction, and later efforts were made to develop a pulp industry. Extraction of timber for sale is now prohibited. The residents, who are poorly educated and suffer poor health, engage in subsistence hunting, fishing and farming, and extract forest products such as Brazil nuts, açaí palm fruit and heart of palm.
The Rio Cajari Extractive Reserve is divided between the municipalities of Mazagão (44.44%), Vitória do Jari (16.88%) and Laranjal do Jari (38.67%) in Amapá. It has an area of 501,771 hectares (1,239,900 acres). The Cajari River, which gives its name to the reserve, drains the center of the reserve. The Amazon River forms the southeast boundary of the reserve, and the Ajuruxi River defines the northeastern boundary. Highway BR-156 runs through the northern part of the reserve, connecting the town of Laranjal do Jari on the Jari River to the west of the reserve with the state capital of Macapá to the east. The Rio Iratapuru Sustainable Development Reserve and the Jari Ecological Station are a few kilometers to the north of the reserve.
In the mid-20th century the area now covered by the reserve was used for rubber extraction. Rubber tappers drawn to the area also learned to extract natural products. Later it became the property of the American millionaire Daniel K. Ludwig, founder of Jari project, which aimed to develop forestry, agriculture and mining. This involved deforestation of large areas and planting exotic species as sources of cellulose.
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