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>>From jcproteg@mail.satlink.com Wed May 20 12:06:28 1998
>Comments: Authenticated sender is <jcproteg@mail.satlink.com>
>From: "Jorge Cappato" <jcproteg@satlink.com>
>To: mancebo@iname.com, bramble@nwf.org, Barbara.Pyle@turner.com,
> fnrbras@magiclink.com.br, gabb@reuna.cl, h0847csk@rz.hu-berlin.de,
> Deborah_Moore@edf.org, glen@nutecnet.com.br
>Date: Wed, 20 May 1998 05:01:53 ARG
>Subject: Large floodings in Parana river wetlands
>CC: aleta@irn.org, jloretz@tiac.net, marilyn@laurelsprings.com,
> fcebrac@nutecnet.com.br, nisaeva@aha.ru, Chularoo@aol.com,
> robfrangerar@t-online.de, taller@cyberia.net.ar
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>Priority: normal
>
>LARGE FLOODINGS IN PARANA RIVER WETLANDS - ARGENTINA
>
>More than 100,000 environmental refugees only in Argentina, are just one of
>the indicators of one of the largest floods in the Parana-Paraguay-Plata
>Basin,
>deeply altered by anthropogenic changes.
>--------------
>
>At this moment the Parana river registers one of the largest floods in
>history. The level of the
>river grows and water overflows the alluvial valley, a giant ecosystem of
>wetlands, the average
>of which is 25 to 30 km in width, though can reach up to 60 km.
>Parana-Paraguay basin is
>the second largest in the world after the Amazon's one, with a surface of
>more than 3,200,000
>square km, it collects the water of vast areas of five Southamerican
>countries: Brazil, Bolivia,
>Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina.
>
>Obviously, at present, we cannot talk about a "natural phenomenon"; large
>portions of the
>absorbent vegetal sponge of this basin have already been devastated, due
>to the irrational
>expansion of the agricultural frontier. In some Brazilian States such as
>Rio Grande do Sul,
>Parana, Minas Gerais and Mato Grosso do Sul, only remains the 10% of the
>wooded areas
>and less in some cases. The rest of it has been cut or simply "burned".
>During the "Floating
>Seminar on the Paraguay river", organized by 'Sobrevivencia' on July 1996,
>from Corumba
>(Brazil) up to Asuncion (Paraguay), we were able to see the large
>intentional burnings along
>the way on the areas of the Pantanal -the largest wetland on the Planet-.
>These burnings
>were provoked so as to plant soya or to introduce cattle, having in mind a
>short term criteria.
>
>The Pantanal assured the separation of the "flooding waves" of the Parana
>and Paraguay
>rivers; the latter historically added its floods to the Parana river
>approximately 2 or 3 months
>after its own floodings. Now the recurrence of the superposition of the
>peaks of the Paraguay
>and Parana river is superior, and thus large amounts of levels are
>occurring, like in the
>disastrous floods of 1982-83, 1992, and now in1998. Although these dates
>are linked to
>extraordinary events of "El Nino", experts agree that these levels are
>worsened by the
>anthropogenic changes occurring all over the Paraguay-Parana-Plata basin,
>including the
>building of large dams (such as Itaipu and Yacyreta on the Parana river,
>two of the largest
>dams in the world).
>
>The unusual events caused by the evaporation of huge masses of vapour on
>the Pacific Ocean
>in Peru and Ecuador, associated to "El Nino" current, do not escape to the
>incidence of the
>Global Climate Change according to many specialists. So that the wetlands
>linked to the
>biological corridor which is born in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso, that
>follows on the Alto
>Paraguay Wetlands and the Argentinian north up to the alluvial valley of
>the Parana Medio,
>are being affected by these large processes which involve, of course,
>thousands of
>traditional settlers and population of the big cities situated on the
>coast of these extensive
>Southamerican fluvial littoral.
>
>At present there are 13,908 evacuated people among adults and children in
>Santa Fe,
>according to official information. Nowadays the river's level is
>increasing. The majority of these
>environmental refugees with 5,377 evacuated people are located in the
>Capital city. But the
>hazarded population, in the face of new peaks of floods which could
>probably occur from now
>on up to July and August 1998, reaches 100,000 people or even more
>-depending on the levels
>that could be reached by the river. At this moment, the Parana river s
>caudal is of 37,000 cubic
>metres per second, but sometimes this river can reach 90,000 cubic
>mts./second according
>to the maxim module given by the specialists. We consider that it would be
>such an
>irresponsibility not to prepare population for an eventual more serious
>disaster than at present.
>
>Solid based scientific forecasts, like that of the Consulting Enterprise
>Evarsa, with headquarters
>in Buenos Aires, agree that: "The statistical patron of forecast expects a
>stationary volume of
>about 450.000 cubic hectometres from April up to September 1998. Taking
>into account the
>historical behaviour of this river (data from 1904), it is very probable
>that the maxim levels of this
>river will be reached between May and July of the present year. The
>consequences would be
>considerably worse if important rainfall occurred during this period on
>the influence areas of
>the flooding valley (Provinces of Santa Fe, Chaco, Corrientes and Entre Rios)."
>
>The forecast adds that according to the data provided by the "Prevision
>Centre of Weather
>and Climatic Studies and the National Institute of Space Research -Brazil-
>forecasts of
>anomalies of pluvial rainfall are noticed for the trimester from March up
>to May and from April up
>to June of 1998, expecting important rainfall on the high basins of the
>Parana and Paraguay rivers."
>
>This forecast was made by Ing. Eduardo Flamenco based on researches
>developed in the
>International Research Institute (IRI) of the University of Columbia (USA)
>starting from
>the temperature of the Equatorial Pacific Ocean (anomalies of "El Nino")
>and the data coming
>from the National Oceans and Atmosphere Administration (NOAA-USA)
>considered on the
>climate period of 1951-1980 and analysed by the National Centre of
>Environmental Predictions
>(NCEPP-NOAA), and made publicly known in Santa Fe by the initiative of
>Fundacion Proteger
>on 11th September 1997.
>
>Warnings were ignored by governmental authorities who are now facing a
>disadvantaged
>situation to confront the works of protection, evacuation and assistance
>of the affected and
>hazarded communities.
>
>At present mainly the lack of shoes, food and fuel (gas) existing in the
>precarious settlements
>for the environmental refugees; there is also a shortage of building
>material for the ceiling of
>these settlements, for example. 6,000 people are living there, including
>aged people, children
>and milkfed babies, many of whom posses a low level of education, most of
>them does have
>the minimum training needed for emergency situations.
>
>On the large areas of urban periphery of the Santa Fe city garbage is not
>collected, there is
>proliferation of rats due to exceeded levels in the drainage system. The
>Argentinean Society of
>Paediatricians has warned about cases in which these rats bite children on
>their faces and feet
>during the night, since most of these poor settlements do not have floors
>or appropriated closings.
>
>At this moment several tens of thousands of people sleep "protected" by
>sandy terrepleins raised
>by bags, being the level of the river superior to the heights of the
>windows or the ceilings of the
>houses. These terrepleins could be exceeded by water in case of strong
>winds or storms, as have
>already occurred recently.
>
>Being the government capacity exceeded different NGOs, trade unions,
>colleges of professionals
>and citizen s and environmental associations, have created an Emergency
>Citizen Committee. This
>committee headquarters is based in the State Workers Association-Santa Fe;
>the Fundacion Proteger is part of the
>co-ordinating board of this committee. Those active and good communicated
>NGOs are playing an essential role;
>answering to the permanent assistance asking and information of the
>population and another NGOs.
>It is part of the concept of avoiding "a second disaster" which is the
>result of community which
>was not prepared with enough anticipation.
>
>Undoubtedly the flood's problem should be increasingly taken into account
>in the next future
>as part of the wetlands agenda.
>
>Further information:
>
>Fundacion Proteger, Member of IUCN
>Director, Jorge Cappato
>Council Member Global 500 Environmental Forum
>Casilla de Correo 550
>3000 Santa Fe - Argentina
>TelFax: 54-42-981745 Tel: 529189 (9 a 15 hs)
>E-mail: jcproteg@satlink.com
>
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Glenn Switkes, Director, Latin America Program,
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
South America:
Tel/Fax/Message: +55 65 791 1313 (***NEW NUMBER!!!)
Tel: +55 65 971 6306 (new number)
email: glen@nutecnet.com.br
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