Integrated Management of Land-Based Activities in São Francisco River Basin

1. Global Environment Facility - GEF National Water Agency ANA - Brazil Integrated Management of Land-Based Activities in the São Francisco River Basin Project Overview United Nations Environmental Programme - UNEP Organization of American States Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment

2. Physical Background

3. Project Area: Sao Francisco Basin The Rio São Francisco basin is the third largest river basin in Brazil. It covers a large portion of the so called “Drought polygon” of Northeastern Brazil, crossing climatic zones ranging from humid to arid. The Sao Francisco river has its headwaters in the state of Minas Gerais but extends to five additional states.

4. Project Area: Sao Francisco Basin Basin Area: 640, 000 Km² - 8% of national territory States covered: Minas Gerais and Bahia (83%), Pernambuco , Alagoas and Sergipe (16%), and Brasilia (1%) Population: Approximately 13 million people are resident in the basin, principally concentrated in the upper sub-basin. Land-based activities along the river: mining, agriculture, industry, and urban activities.

5. Project Area: Sao Francisco Basin Rivers in the Basin 1. Rio Sao Francisco 2. Rio das Velhas 3. Rio Preto 4. Rio Grande

6. Ecological Structure The basin is divided into Upper, Middle, Lower Middle, and Lower sub-basins, plus the oceanic end point, each with distinct environmental and socioeconomic characteristics. The estuarine wetlands located at the debouchment of the river into the South West Atlantic form a particularly important environmentally sensitive interface between the riverine and marine environments. The Ecological structure is currently under threat due to unsustainable hydrological and land use management practices within the basin.

7. Problem Areas

8. Priority environmental concerns • Land degradation, erosion, and desertification, • Water contamination by organic pollutants and heavy metals, • Modification in the freshwater, estuarine, and marine fauna and flora.

9. Specific Problem Areas • Lower sub-basin: • Sedimentation • Eutrophication in the reservoirs • Oligotrophication of coastal waters • Alteration of river flow regimes • Reductions in numbers and diversities of fish populations and other endangered species • Increased incidence of endemic diseases • Lower-Middle sub-basin: • Water quality • Contaminant deposition of reservoirs • Impaired fish migration • Soil erosion • Impact on fish and aquatic fauna • Modification of river basin and estuarine geomorphology • Contamination of Surface • Upper Sub-basin: • Direct discharge of untreated municipal and industrial effluents • Widespread use of agrochemicals • Deforestation • River Contamination • Impact on fish and aquatic fauna

10. Project Objectives, Expected Results and Components

11. Project Goals • Assist the government of Brazil to incorporate land-based environmental concerns into development policies, plans, and programs for the Basin and for the protection of its coastal zone, • Develop a Watershed Management Program (WMP) for the São Francisco River Basin.

12. Expected Results • Improved river basin and coastal zone environmental concerns, increased public and scientific awareness and knowledge within the basin and its coastal zone, • Improved public and stakeholder participation through hands-on type involvement in communities in the remedial measures, • Improved integrated management and environmentally sustainable development of SFRB, • Improved organizational structure and staffing capabilities needed to implement financial mechanisms for water rights and water charges, • Improved quantification of water use, use conflicts and hydrological management.

13. Project Components • River Basin and Coastal Zone Environmental Analysis • Public and Stakeholder Participation • Organizational Structure Development • Watershed Management Program Formulation • Information Sharing and Dissemination • Quantification of Water Use and Hydrological Management • Financial Mechanisms • Formulation of the Watershed Management Program

14. Stakeholder Participation • This project was formulated with the active and broad-based participation of representatives from the municipal, state, and national governments, academic and research institutions, private sector representatives and non-governmental organizations. • More than 270 persons were involved in the project design.

15. Partners • Organization of American States • United Nations Environmental Programme -UNEP • National Water Agency ANA, Brazil • Global Environment Facility - GEF

16. For Further Information Contact: Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment Organization of American States Project Manager: Daniel Perna dperna@oas.org To go back to main page, click on the "back button"