Fisherman Welton de Franca fishes in the Tocantins River in the Ilha da praia Alta community near Pedral do Lourenco, a natural rocky formation on the Tocantins River that may be blown up to build the Araguaia-Tocantins riverway, in Nova Ipixuna, Para State, Brazil, September 2, 2025. Opening the Araguaia-Tocantins riverway to barges year-round could clear the way for soy and corn exports through the Amazon Basin to rival the Mississippi River, cutting freight costs and cementing Brazilian supremacy in the global grains trade; but federal prosecutors are trying to halt the project, urging courts to consider impacts on riverside communities. "We can't go anywhere without our boats. We live from the fish," said Franca, whose family settled on an island in the river overlooking the rocks when he was 12. REUTERS/Adriano Machado
