Jessica Arre’s scientific contributions

In rural and peri-urban populations of Argentina, woody plants constitute one of the principal sources of fuel for heating and domestic cooking. Using an ethnobotanical approach, we aimed to identify in Esquel, Chubut, the main fuel-wood species used, the different uses they were put to, and the general characteristics of their commercialization. In this locality, 13 semi-structured interviews were carried out with fuel-wood retailers and 33 interviews with users. Commercial distribution is based on the marketing of eight plant species (five native and three exotic), which come from the forested regions of the Andean cordillera. In addition, users obtain supplies by gathering fuel-wood at the roadsides and in public wooded lands close to their homes, as well as purchasing waste from local sawmills. According to informants, the Antarctic beech (Nothofagus antarctica) is the most extensively commercialised species and the most culturally important in relation to this use, due to its high quality, reasonable price and ready availability. The marked dependence on fuel-wood species in suburban neighborhoods of this city is sustained by diverse supply strategies employed by locals, but these are restricted to a very limited number of species, which therefore puts the conservation of native species at serious risk.