Perceived environmental degradation by long-term residents of an Amazonian urban stream

Resumo

This study investigates the perceptions of long-term residents living along an Amazonian stream (Santarém, Pará) regarding potential local environmental degradation processes between 1988 and 2018. The methodology involved problem-centred interviews (N = 31) with local residents and on-site visits to strategic points along the stream’s main course. The transcriptions of the interviews were analysed using the Discourse of the Collective Subject (DCS) methodological strategy. Based on five guiding questions, 27 DCSs were generated, highlighting the following predominant central ideas: “Vegetation was suppressed by humans”; “Stream was good for use”; “Emergence of invasions”; “Humans”; and, finally, “due to the degradation of the stream.” The data suggest significant suppression of native vegetation, degradation of the water source, the emergence of illegal land occupations, and a lack of action by local public authorities. The findings illustrate how collective environmental memory is shaped by observed biophysical degradation and a perceived absence of governance, aligning with social representations theory but also revealing place‑based ambivalence toward past and present land use.