Pantanal has rivers below average even after rain – 02/17/2024 – Environment

The rivers in the Upper Paraguay basin, responsible for the floods characteristic of the Pantanal, remain at levels below the average for the period even after the rains arrive in the region.

Bulletin from the Brazilian Hydrological Service (SHB) released on Thursday (15) states that more rain is forecast for the next four weeks. The expectation is for a peak of precipitation on Wednesday (21), when a more significant rise in rivers is expected.

“These rains are expected to cause gradual increases in river levels in Ladário, Forte Coimbra and Porto Murtinho. There is a small possibility that the Alto Paraguai and Cuiabá rivers will experience more significant elevations due to more intense rains that may occur, but the most likely is moderate rises in these rivers after the period of concentrated rain around 02/21”, states the bulletin.

The pantanal receives rainwater from the plateau regions, from the Alto Paraguai basin. In the natural calendar, the cycle begins in October, with peaks in December and January, lasting until March at the latest. During floods, water overflows river channels, connects lakes and forms large, continuous flooded areas.

However, from November until the beginning of this month, the region suffered from fires. The low volume of water expands the area available for fire action.

In the last week, according to SHB data, the Paraguay River basin recorded an accumulated volume of rain of around 33 millimeters. Despite this, the water level remains low.

In Barra do Bugres (MT), the river level has reduced in recent days and reached the mark of 95 centimeters, while the historical average for the date is 3.69 meters, according to the bulletin.

At the Cáceres station (MT), there was an increase due to the rain, and the level observed this Thursday was 2.14 meters, almost half of what was expected (4.32 meters). In Cuiabá (MT), the river has dropped 28 cm in the last few days and is at 1.58 m. The historical average is 3.94 m.

The bulletin describes a similar scenario in the stations of Mato Grosso do Sul. In Ladário (MS), the last level observed was 70 centimeters, where the average is 2 m. In Miranda (MS), the river rose by 36 cm in the last week, but the observed level (1.99 m) is below average (4.63 m).