Environmental Issues in the la Plata Basin

Abstract

The la Plata River basin is one of the largest in the world, with an area of about 3 million km2. It includes parts of five countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) and the water resources of the la Plata basin are essential for their economic development. The main tributaries are the rivers Parana, Paraguay and Uruguay. Some of the main developments having environmental impacts that influence the basin have been the following: (1) developments of many hydropower reservoirs in the Upper Parana River, in Brazil, from 1960-90; (2) deforestation in the Parana, Uruguay and Paraguay basins from 1950-90; (3) introduction of intensive agricultural practice after 1970; (4) urban developments with change to flood regimes; and (5) navigation and conservation of the Upper Paraguay River. Since 1970, flow increases have been observed which may have been caused by changes in vegetation cover, or by climate variation. The changes have raised important issues for both water resource development and environmental conservation. This paper discusses the water management and environmental issues, taking account of climate patterns and the development of the five countries sharing the basin.