Beatriz Nussbaumer, Günter Lorenzl:
The Impact of Outmigration on the Peasants Systems of Natural Resources Use. The Case of El Parque Chaqueño Argentina

BEATRIZ NUSSBAUMER¹, GÜNTER LORENZL^2
1Humboldt University Berlin, Germany
²Humboldt University Berlin, Department of Agricultural Extension and Communication Sciences, Germany

The consequences of rural migration on rural space are less studied than the ones on urban places, although they could be strong in many sections of the rural environment, specially in marginal regions. Frequently stated rural unemployment might turn into a problem of labour shortage, the repercussions of which are studied in El Chaco Argentina.

Small producers tend to base their production system on family labour force and they develop a diversified production strategy. The most obvious impact of outmigration on the rural space is the diminishing labour supply affecting the labour organisation patterns of the remaining peasants. The rearrangement of labour impacts through three main transformation processes on the systems of natural resources use.

Firstly, considering that the maintenance of diversified systems demands a high amount of labour, the need to economise labour diminishes the diversity of the production systems.

Strongly related is the second process, defined as the orientation towards cash production systems that in many cases also affects the self-consumption strategies. Thirdly, the appropriated technologies, also considered as demanding plenty of labour, are replaced by labour saving technologies which are less suitable for maintenance of environmental stability.

The analysis of these three transformation processes suggests that rural migration not only produces negative environmental consequences at the places of origin but promotes also the erosion of cultural patterns. The role of small farmers and peasants in maintaining diversity and extending the appropriate management knowledge to next generation should be considered as a main strategy for sustainable development support.

Keywords: Chaco Region, diversity and management knowledge, rural migration, systems of natural resources use

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Contact Address: Günter Lorenzl, Humboldt University Berlin, Department of Agricultural Extension and Communication Sciences, Luisenstraße 53, 10099 Berlin, Germany, e-mail: lorenzlrz.hu-berlin.de