Branco River Flow Reduced to Historic Lows in the Amazon

March 29, 2024 Hour: 1:07 pm

On Friday, the National Water Agency reported that the drought in the Brazilian Amazon has caused a reduction in the flow of the Branco River to historic lows.

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Earlier this week, the flow reached a mark of -39 centimeters, a figure reminiscent of the record set during the 2016 drought, when the flow reached -59 centimeters.

The flow of this tributary, which runs through the northern state of Roraima for 500 kilometers before flowing into the Negro River, has dropped so much that extensive sandbars hundreds of meters wide, once submerged, are now visible.

In Boa Vista, people walk and take photos on the riverbed, driven by curiosity, while river transport between the banks has been affected. Additionally, the reduction in flow has paralyzed some water treatment stations and has affected the water supply to the population.

O Estado de Roraima enfrenta fortes ondas de calor e registrou o recorde de 2.057 focos de incêndios em fevereiro.

Enquanto a fumaça dos incêndios cobre a capital Boa Vista (RR), a estiagem também seca o rio Branco e compromete o abastecimento de água em diversas cidades. pic.twitter.com/g4Shj4adgK

— socioambiental (@socioambiental)
March 16, 2024

The text reads, “The state of Roraima faces severe heat waves and registered a record 2,057 fires in February. As smoke from the fires covers the capital city Boa Vista, the drought dries up the Branco River and compromises the water supply in many cities.”

Although located on the banks of the Rio Branco, the city of Mucajai experienced severe water shortages, as 70 percent of the supply was affected by the large amount of sand captured by the local station’s water pumps.

The drought in Roraima has also multiplied the number of wildfires. Between March 2023 and March 2024, the number of fires increased from 499 to 1,378, according to satellite data from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research.

The sky over Boa Vista has taken on a whitish tone from the smoke of the fires, although rain finally gave some relief on Friday after 42 days of drought.

El Niño, a climatic phenomenon that has been affecting South American since mid-2023, has caused high temperatures and a shortage of rainfall in the northern part of Brazil. At the same time, however, it caused torrential rains in the south of the country.

#FromTheSouth News Bits | The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) warned Thursday that countries in Latin America and the Caribbean will probably experience the “worst dengue season”, aggravated by the combination of the El Niño phenomenon and climate change. pic.twitter.com/zJgWMagEBm

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
March 29, 2024