Brazil Adopts Freshwater Ecoregions in First National Freshwater Management Plan
June 6, 2006
The government of Brazil has approved its first national plan for managing its freshwater resources. A critical component of this plan is the adoption of freshwater ecoregions defined through scientific studies resulting from a partnership between The Nature Conservancy and World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The Freshwater Management Plan assures that aquatic biodiversity is an important aspect of freshwater planning for the entire country. Before, the most important considerations for the government were hydroelectric potential, navigation and water utilization regimes for drinking water, other household uses, industrial uses and irrigation.
By adopting the Nature Conservancy/WWF ecoregions, the Brazilian government explicitly makes biodiversity a part of the decision-making process for the use of the country's freshwater resources. This represents a great leap forward in the sustainable use of aquatic resources in Brazil.
The Conservancy began working with the Brazilian government in 2004 to incorporate the Nature Conservancy/WWF ecoregions into the Freshwater Management Plan. Brazil is the first country in South America to develop such a plan, which encompasses objectives, goals and guidelines for the sustainable uses of freshwater until 2020.
“...There is much still to be learned about freshwater biodiversity, one of the most fragile components of the Earth's natural heritage.”
David Oren
Science Coordinator
Amazon Conservation Program
The Nature Conservancy
With the world's largest river basin — the Amazon — and the world's largest tropical floodplain — the Pantanal — the freshwater biodiversity of Brazil is staggering. In fact, Brazil has more freshwater fish species than any other country on Earth.
"In the Amazon River alone, there are an estimated 2,000 species of fish, more than all of North America," says David Oren, the Conservancy's Amazon Conservation Program Science Coordinator.
"Only about 1,200 of those species have been described by science, however, indicating that in Brazil, as in much of the rest of the world, there is much still to be learned about freshwater biodiversity, one of the most fragile components of the Earth's natural heritage."
According to Glauco Freitas, the Conservancy's Great Rivers Partnership (GRP) manager for the Paraguay-Paraná watershed, "from the beginning of our conversations with the Brazilian government about their freshwater management plan, they have been cognizant of the importance of protecting Brazil's waters not only for the sake of their extraordinary aquatic life, but also to protect sources of water for communities. GRP actions will now be closely linked with the Freshwater Management Plan."
For More Information:
- Where We Work: The Nature Conservancy in Brazil
Many of Brazil’s plants and animals are found no where else on earth. Brazil’s sheer size, 3.3 million square miles — an area larger than the "lower 48" United States — and its abundant natural resources crystallize its importance. Brazil’s environmental health has the potential to impact all of us on a global scale.
- Places We Protect: The Pantanal, Brazil
The Pantanal is the world’s largest freshwater wetland, a seasonally flooded plain fed by the tributaries of the Paraguay River. At 68,000 square miles, it is almost 10 times the size of the Everglades.
- How We Work: Great Rivers Partnership
Great Rivers Partnership is a collaboration between a wide array of partners dedicated to the conservation of the world's great river systems for the benefit of the people and the species that depend upon them for life.
- How We Work: Sustainable Waters Program
The vision of The Sustainable Waters Program is to help protect freshwater ecosystems by advancing water policies that secure adequate water flows in rivers, lakes and wetlands.
- Our Partner: World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
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