Brazil's Natural Resource Management

Brazil’s water usage can be divided into three main areas: industrial, domestic, and agriculture. Agriculture is the main facet in Brazil’s economy which makes water their biggest concern. Brazil has three main water basins: Amazons, Tocantins and São Francisco. They also have two other basin systems which comprise many smaller basins. The Amazon River basin is very important; being one of the biggest rivers in the world, its huge output accounts for over half of Brazil’s “Drainage Basin.” Surface water is not Brazil’s only abundance in water; subsurface water is also widely available in Brazil. Even with Brazil’s great abundance of water, there are still some regions which are drier, such as the northeast. If maintained properly, their water resources are sufficient to provide for all irrigation “for the foreseeable future”. Brazil has been a part of many treaties including “Treaty of the River del Plata, Amazon Cooperation Treaty, Cooperation Agreement for the Use of Natural Resources and Development of the Quaraí River Basin and the Treaty for the use of Shared Natural Resources of the Bordering Stretches of the Uruguay River and its tributary, the Pepiri-Guaçu River, between Brazil and Argentina.” All of these treaties were signed as different means to protect one of Brazil’s most abundant natural resources. The other reason that water is so important to Brazil is its use as a power supply. Almost 93% of the power they use comes from hydroelectric power. They even house the world’s largest hydroelectricity plant which they share with Paraguay. Currently only about one-fifth of the country’s capacity in hydroelectric production is being tapped. (Kundell, 2008) Brazil faces three major issues when it comes to water: flood...

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