The Brazilian Northeast Region and the Rio Sao Francisco

Abstract

The drought-stricken Northeast of Brazil has for centuries been an economic and social problem-area for the country. The lack of reliable water supplies for both potable use and irrigation, coupled with poor soils and weak institutional systems for the development and management of water supplies has, historically, caused great suffering for the population of this region. It has also created an economic drain on the resources of the country as cyclical mitigation efforts have been necessary to alleviate these problems. In recent years, the Federal Government and the state governments of the Northeast have begun a broad-based effort to develop the institutional and legal structure to support efficient management of the scarce water resources of the region. This follows many years of attempting to solve the problem solely through the use of infrastructure development. Some of this infrastructure effort has been extremely successful, but many of the systems have been poorly managed and maintained with resulting inefficiencies and waste. Recent Federal and State water laws along with strengthening of the agencies responsible for the management of the resource have improved this situation and show great promise for the future. The Rio Sao Francisco which crosses through the Northeast represents the single most valuable water resource of the region. It has been extensively developed for the purpose of hydro-powerproduction, frequently at the expense of other multi-purposeuses. The resource has been partially developed for irrigation of high-value fruit crops and has the potential of further more intensive development if conflicts between governmental jurisdictions and competing sectoral users can be resolved. The river basin is also faced with problems of water pollution from municipal/industrial point sources in the upper reaches of the basin and non-point source pollution from agricultural and land management practices within the entire basin. Possible strategies for the future development of an integrated management system for the Sao Francisco Basin include the development of a reliable and credible database to provide all stakeholderswith full information regarding the resource. In addition, practical decisionsupport models for the basin are needed to give decision makers the capability of evaluating alternative strategies to optimize the management of the basin. To develop support for this process among the stakeholders and general population, an extensive education and public information programme is needed to reach the media, the public leaders, politicians and stakeholders within the basin. Ultimately, the decisions with regard to the development and management of the resources of the basin will be made in the public and political arena in response to the demands of the stakeholders.Provided that these decisions are based upon a fully informed public and supported by state-of-the-art technology, the evolution of a sound and sustainable management system within the basin holds great promise for the alleviation of poverty and the minimization of the vulnerability of the region to cyclical drought.