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Until the end of the 1970s, there were no marine conservation programs in Brazil. Sea turtles were included in an IBDF (Brazilian Institute of Forestry Development) list of species facing extinction. But they were disappearing fast, because they were often captured in fishermen's nets, females were killed and nests destroyed on the beaches. This was denounced abroad as part of an international reaction.
In 1980, IBDF created the TAMAR Program, with the objective of saving and protecting sea turtles in Brazil. The work started in Bahia (Praia do Forte), Espírito Santo (Comboios) and Sergipe (Pirambú), and was then extended nationwide, with the identification of species, the main nesting sites, the reproduction period, and the main socio-economic problems related to the exploitation of sea turtles by the coastal residents. Technical staff spent two years traveling along the Brazilian coastline. In 1982 and 1986, SUDEPE (Fishing Development Agency) passed regulations prohibiting the capture of turtles of any species. Subsequently, there were Brazilian and international laws protecting the sea turtle today.
That is how the TAMAR Program was created, and it is currently linked institutionally to IBAMA (Brazilian Institute of the Environment), a department subordinated to the Ministry of the Environment.
In 1988, the TAMAR Program won a decisive and definite ally: the Pró-TAMAR Foundation. This non-profit organization was created to support, expedite and further the development of the work of sea turtle conservation.
The Foundation is responsible for the administrative, technical and scientific areas as well as fund-raising from private enterprise. It manages over 60 percent of the Program's operation, including human resources: out of the 400 employees, 22 are hired and paid by IBAMA.
TAMAR carries out constant monitoring, keeping the appropriate departments informed and supplying logistical and operational support to coastal management.
TAMAR meets its objectives creatively. It develops pioneering conservation techniques and promotes the pursuit of non-predatory economic alternatives capable of improving man's quality of life in local coastal communities. Yesterday's predator has become today's protector and defender of life. This has been the result of an intense program of environmental education and awareness-raising conducted by the TAMAR-IBAMA Program over the last 17 years.
