Ecological Risk Analysis of the Paraguay River Basin
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REPORT 2018 Technical Report Ecological Risk Analysis of the Paraguay River Basin EDITION 2 André Dibb/WWF-Brasil WWF-Brazil Maurício Voivodic - CEO Julio Cesar Sampaio - Executive Director Copyright Text Review Renata Andrada Peña Letícia Campos Graphic Design and Editing Beatriz Boock Review Renata Andrada Peña Letícia Campos Authors Bernardo Caldas Cássio Bernardino Donald Eaton Techical Review José Sabino (University of Anhanguera – UNIDERP) Ivan Bergier (Embrapa Pantanal) Fabio Roque (Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul) Collaborators Luciana Andrade (National Water Agency) Wolfgang Junk (National Institute of Science and Technology in Wetlands) Ivan Bergier (Embrapa Pantanal) Hermani Vieira (Energy Research Company) José Luis Cartes (Guyra Paraguai) Juan José Gaitán (Natural Resources Group – INTA EEA Salta – Argentina) Hernan Elena (Natural Resources Group – INTA EEA Salta – Argentina) Daniel Villaroel Segarra (Investigator associated with the Noel Kempff Mercado Natural History Museum) Adriana Panhol Bayma (Ministry of Environment) Luciana Rodrigues (Ministry of Environment) Fernando Larroza (ONGagua – Paraguay) José Sabino (University of Anhanguera – UNIDERP) Geraldo Damasceno (Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul) Fabio Roque (Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul) Cátia Nunes (Federal University of Mato Grosso) Victor Hugo Magallanes (WWF-Bolivia) Donald Eaton (WWF-Brazil) Júlio Cesar Sampaio (WWF-Brazil) Paula Hanna Valdujo (WWF-Brazil) Ricardo Eller Aranha (WWF-Brazil) Breno Melo (WWF-Brazil) Rosana Pinheiro (WWF-Brazil) Alessandra Manzur (WWF-Brazil) Ecological Risk Analysis of the Paraguay River Basin – First Updated Version – 2018 WWF-Brazil. Brasília, 2018. 23 p.; il.; 21x29,7 cm. Support Type: INTERNET References 1. Paraguay River Basin 2. Ecological Risk 3. Pantanal 4. Tableland 5. Plain 6. Water Resources I. WWF-Brazil II. Title Sumário 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 6 2 Methods ..................................................................................................................................... 7 2.1 The Ecological Risk Index ..................................................................................................8 2.2 The steps involved in the study ........................................................................................10 3 Results ..................................................................................................................................... 13 3.1 Upper Paraguay River Basin Tableland ........................................................................... 15 3.2 Atlantic Rainforest Region of the Paraguay River Basin ...................................................18 3.3 Salta – Jujuy Development Axis .......................................................................................20 3.4 Porto Suares and Vale do Tucavaca .................................................................................21 4 A Vision for the River Basin – Discussions and Recommendations ..........................................22 5 References.................................................................................................................................24 Lista de figuras Figure 1 – Steps in the ERI process..............................................................................................12 Figure 2 – Areas of high hydric contribution in the Paraguay River Basin.....................................13 Figure 3 – Compound Ecological Risk Index for the Paraguay River Basin..................................14 Figure 4 - Ecological Risk Index associated with agricultural activities.........................................15 Figure 5 - Ecological Risk Index associated with urbanisation......................................................15 Figure 6 - Ecological Risk Index associated with dams.................................................................15 Figure 7 - Ecological Risk Index associated with mining...............................................................15 Figure 8 – High ecological risk areas in the tablelands of the Upper Paraguay River Basin ........16 Figure 9 – Areas of high ecological risk in the Atlantic Rainforest Region of the Paraguay River Basin..........................................................................................................19 Figure 10 – High ecological risk areas in the Salta-Jujy development axis...................................21 Figure 11 - High ecological risk areas in the Puerto Suarez and Vale do Tucavaca region..........22 1 Introduction The Paraguay River Basin extends across 1. INTRODUCTION Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina and is home to over 10 million people (IBGE, 2018; IGN, 2018, GeoBolivia, 2017; Gobierno Nacional de Paraguai, 2018) who depend on its ecosystem services and whose future is under threat as a result of climate change, water shortages and the absence of a socio-economic planning to promote sustainable devel- opment. Paraguay River Basin The Paraguay River Basin contains one of the planet’s largest wet- lands – the Pantanal (Fraser & Keddy, 2005). This immense flood- plain covers an area the size of Holland, Belgium, Portugal and Swit- zerland combined and plays a fundamental part in the regulation of climate, rainfall, river flow, water quality and carbon capture, and in the high levels of primary production that sustain its widely bio- diverse and complex food chains. The waters of the Pantanal origi- nate from the rains falling on the neighbouring tableland areas that uniquely floods into the plains below. For this reason, an integrated and systemic vision of this drainage basin is required to protect the ecosystem services provided by this set of environments. Although the Paraguay River Basin boasts a wealth of natural resourc- es, these are under pressure from a range of threats that can be found throughout its entire territory. Thanks to tools such as the Ecological Risk Index, which is essential for the improved management of its natural resources, the identification, evaluation and mapping of these threats is now possible. The Paraguay River Basin’s Ecological Risk Index (ERI) was calcu- lated for the first time in 2012 and has since been used in important conservations actions such as the Pantanal Headwaters Pact, this having ensured the recuperation of over 80 tributary springs along the Paraguay River to date. The ERI methodology involves the geospatial analysis of threats iden- tified across the entire drainage basin. Considering the probability and degree of severity of each threat for the range of different land- scapes, it identifies areas in which the pressure on natural resources is most critical. This approach strengthens actions focused on mitigating and preventing impacts to the environment. 4 1 Introduction After fiver years of the first work to calculate ERI values, a need was identified to update this essential tool to support the water security and sustainable management of natural resources of this landscape. This task involved the participation of over 20 researchers and techni- cians from all of the four countries that share this ecoregion who work with natural resources in the Paraguay River Basin. This exchange between landscape planning and management agents led to the compilation and validation of geospatial information and the evaluation of both the threats and the sensitivity of the region’s different environmental territories. This collaborative study between the countries that share the Par- aguay River Basin presents priority areas for the management and conservation of natural resources, encouraging various social, govern- mental and economic actors to engage and take joint action in order to achieve the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established in 2015. By 2020, two-thirds of We are now approaching some key moments for the planet, and it is wildlife may be extinct essential that immediate action be taken in order to preserve life and maintain social and economic relations as we know them. If global carbon emissions are not reduced by 2020, the effects of global warm- ing, including the loss of biodiversity, rises in sea level and impacts on agricultural production, could be irreversible (Figueres, et al., 2017). In addition, two thirds of the world’s wildlife could be extinct by 2020 (WWF, 2016). Highly-impactful joint action is urgently required, and this should be based on science and include the involvement of all sectors of society. Our hope is that this study will contribute to the construction of a better future for both people and the environment. 5 2. Methods / 2.1. The Ecological Risk Index The Ecological Risk Index (ERI) is a territorial plan- 2. METHODS ning tool focused on the integrity of natural resources in aquatic ecosystems. Based on the analysis of stressors, the ERI facilitates planning in the management, conservation and recuperation of threatened ecosystems, and by working with probabil- ities it can be used as a predictive tool for conservation planning. Regions that are identified as having a high ecological risk are those whose natural resources have a high potential for degradation. One example is integrity analysis in relation to the threats associated with gas and oil pipelines. Areas with a high concentration of this type of infrastructure can present a higher Ecological Risk Index due to the higher probability