Navigation

O maior tributário do rio Amazonas ameaçado

Friday, September 28, 2007
Documento por Amigos da Terra Brasil e outras resumindo os impactos dos projetos hidrelétricos no rio Madeira

Navigation Project Threatens Livelihoods, Ecosystem

Tuesday, October 1, 2002
Blasting of rapids for a planned shipping channel on the Upper Mekong River threatens to undermine people’s livelihoods and destroy the complex river ecosystem. The Upper Mekong Navigation Improvement Project, funded by the Chinese government, is part of a grand scheme to allow large ships to freely navigate from Simao, China to Luang Prabang in Laos. The first stage of the project has destroyed 10 major rapids and 10 scattered reefs along a 331-kilometer section of the Mekong from the China-Burma border to Ban Houayxai in Laos. This 2002 Fact Sheet describes the project and its impacts.

Madeira River

Madeira River vista
The Madeira River is the Amazon's largest and most important tributary. Spanning about a quarter of the Brazilian Amazon, the Madeira Basin is a treasure trove of biodiversity, providing home to the spotted jaguar, giant otter, pink dolphin, and countless other endangered mammal species. The river teems with life – an estimated 750 fish species migrate some 4,500 km each year to spawn and feed in the nutrient-rich, muddy waters of the upper Madeira. But all this is under threat. The Brazilian government is building two massive hydroelectric dams on the Madeira. Construction of these project

Paraguay-Paraná Hidrovia

Pantanal wetlands site planned for barge port, Mato Grosso
The hidrovia is a plan by the five countries of the La Plata Basin to convert the Paraguay and Paraná rivers into an industrial shipping channel. The original studies for this project were resoundingly rejected as a result of independent technical critiques, organized by the Rios Vivos Coalition, which not only disseminated technical objections to the project, but also helped organize a broad–based coalition of environmental, social, and indigenous organizations to discuss alternatives to the hidrovia with local communities throughout the region.

Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America

River port, Brazilian Amazon
The Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America (IIRSA) is a bold effort by the governments of South America to construct a new infrastructure network for the continent, including roads, waterways, ports, and energy and communications interconnections. IIRSA’s single largest project is the Madeira–Mamoré–Beni–Madre de Dios hydroelectric and hidrovia (channelization) complex in the Amazon. IIRSA’s single largest project is the Madeira–Mamoré–Beni–Madre de Dios hydroelectric and hidrovia (channelization) complex in the Amazon.

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