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Suscribe x MercoPress, en Español Montevideo, May 5th 2025 - 13:27 UTC The Brazilian Geological Survey (SGB) found that the Paraguay River was 62 centimeters below its reference level the lowest level ever measured at the Ladario post on the border with Porto Quijarro (Bolivia) thus surpassing the 61 cms recorded in 1964 The standard level is an average depth of 5 meters (m) according to the Mato Grosso do Sul Environment Institute (Imasul) which had already warned of the river's lowest historical level last Wednesday The station serves as a reference for the Brazilian Navy when analyzing conditions for navigation and defining restrictive measures The Paraguay River flows through the states of Mato Grosso from where it flows to Paraguay and Argentina Its springs are fed by waters from the Amazon According to the National Water Agency (ANA) the Paraguay Hydrographic Region occupies 4.3% of Brazilian territory covering part of the states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul which includes most of Mato Grosso's Pantanal the largest continuous wetland area on the planet the situation had been expected since February when researchers warned of the possibility of reaching a historic low in the region “This drought has been observed due to below-normal rainfall throughout the rainy season That's why we've been warning about this process that was unfolding in the basin,” researcher Marcus Suassuna said in an SGB statement the drop in the level of the Paraguay River has direct implications for the economy and the environment as well as the supply of riverside communities Experts associate this drastic reduction with climate variability and the lack of rainfall in the river basin one of the most fragile and important biomes on the planet is particularly vulnerable to these changes which affect both biodiversity and human communities.“ the recovery of levels in the Paraguay River Basin will be slow The level at Ladario should remain below par until the second half of November ”We've noticed that the river's rate of descent has slowed considerably and has been stabilized since last Monday (7) due to the first rains of the rainy season but not at a very strong rate that will contribute to rapid rises in this stretch and throughout the basin,” Suassuna pointed out The decade has been marked by insufficient rainy seasons for the recovery of reserves The SGB also found that during the rainy season that began in October 2023 an accumulated deficit of 395 (millimeters) mm of rain was recorded considering the accumulated from 2020 to 2024 equivalent to the total of one hydrological year the Paraguay River Basin recorded 3 mm of rain last week with all of the region's rivers below average levels for this time of year which stood within normal projections thanks to the regularization of flows by the operation of the Manso Hydroelectric Plant the Paraguay River reached its lowest level in the entire series of monitoring stations The study explains that the projections used indicate accumulated rainfall of 27 mm in the coming weeks leading to the beginning of the recovery of levels in Cáceres According to the National Electric System Operator (ONS) considering the estimate for Affluent Natural Energy (ENA) the Southern Region should reach 86% of the Long Term Average (MLT) This measure indicates the capacity of hydroelectric generation systems with 49% of the MLT; Southeast/Central-West The Brazilian Navy also warned about the worsening navigation conditions for the Paraguay River: “Due to the rigid drought regime observed on the Paraguay River and the consequent outcropping of sandbanks and rocks navigators should redouble their attention paying attention to the beacon and maintaining a safe speed.” The region has seen constant boat traffic since at least the 18th century establishing an important integration corridor with neighboring countries Today it is one of the six waterways whose bidding process for concession to the private sector has been established as a priority by the National Waterway Transportation Agency (ANTAQ) The project aims to speed up the transport of cargo especially agricultural and mineral production which should favor the increased exploitation of these items in the region activities that lead to increased water consumption Commenting for this story is now closed.If you have a Facebook account, become a fan and comment on our Facebook Page Please press and hold the button until it turns completely green If you believe this is an error, please contact our support team. 147.45.197.102 : ea1cd755-0a5d-489e-9292-8b2a462a The worst drought in half a century and an unprecedented number of fires threaten the world’s largest floodplain Lucas Ninno / Getty Images Fire in the Poconé region of Mato Grosso in August this yearLucas Ninno / Getty Images João Paulo Guimaraes / AFP A raccoon killed by the fireJoão Paulo Guimaraes / AFP Mauro Pimentel / AFP A firefighter battles the flamesMauro Pimentel / AFP Mauro Pimentel / AFP Aerial view of the smoke produced by fires in the Pantanal, taken on September 14Mauro Pimentel / AFP José Sabino A stretch of the Paraguay River that passes the Amolar mountains on the border between the states of Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do SulJosé Sabino According to the study described in the book only a small section in the northwest and central region of the biome around the Taquari River were flooded in January 2006 flooding in these areas intensified and even reached the central-eastern Pantanal a region that is generally less susceptible to floods At the height of the dry season in June and July was under water—a result of the rain that fell in the north earlier in the year but sectors of the central region around the Taquari remained flooded “This flood dynamic is essential to the maintenance of the Pantanal,” says Assine the entire floodplain loses its fundamental characteristics.” Studies carried out before this year’s drought and escalating fires indicate that the flood cycle may be losing strength An article published in the scientific journal Acta Limnologica Brasiliensia in September this year calculated that the area flooded in the north of the Pantanal in August—the peak of the dry season—had reduced by 16% over a period of 10 years “This is due to a fall in the number of days on which it rains in this region,” says aquatic ecologist and lead author of the study Ernandes Sobreira Oliveira-Júnior from the State University of Mato Grosso (UNEMAT) in Cáceres Oliveira-Júnior and his colleagues analyzed historical monthly rainfall data from over 42 years there are 13% more days without rain in the north of the Pantanal than 50 years ago,” says the UNEMAT researcher rainfall patterns in the biome are partly influenced by the enormous rainforest the Pantanal will probably receive less water if it rains less at the headwaters of the rivers in the Paraguay basin which are situated in areas close to the Cerrado (wooded savanna) An article published in the journal PLOS One in January this year the Pantanal may suffer from more and more extreme events as a result of climate change This includes both intense and prolonged periods of rain and drought there has been a trend toward repeated severe droughts “These droughts are caused mainly by warming surface waters in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in the Northern hemisphere,” German biologist and lead author of the paper Karl-Ludwig Schuchmann from the Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig in Bonn and the Federal University of Mato Grosso (UFMT) told Pesquisa FAPESP “If the rainfall system collapses the Pantanal as we know it will cease to exist.” But it is not yet known how much rain will fall but it could also cause a typical problem in post-fire seasons when large amounts of ash and oxidized biomass are washed into rivers and lagoons potentially suffocating fish and other water animals reduces the amount of oxygen available in the water and increases the carbon dioxide “It is possible that the decoada this year will be more intense than usual,” says Sabino “If the ashes of these record-breaking fires do not soak into the ground an unprecedented decoada is likely to occur.” Project Paleo-hydrological changes, chronology of events and sedimentary dynamics in the quaternary Pantanal basin (No. 14/06889-2); Grant Mechanism Regular Research Grant; Principal Investigator Mario Luiz Assine (UNESP); Investment R$253,715.39 © Revista Pesquisa FAPESP - All rights reserved Por um futuro em que as pessoas vivam em harmonia com a natureza Photos and graphics © WWF or used with permission. 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