MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

State of water shortage declared in five major rivers in Brazil

Months after the Rio Grande de Sul floods, large parts of Brazil are facing water scarcity

Brazilian authorities Monday decreed a “state of water shortage” in the basins of five major rivers nationwide. The critical situation affects some 2,264 million km², it was explained. It was the first time in over 100 gauging these water levels that such an extreme measure has been adopted.

The National Water and Basic Sanitation Agency (ANA) explained that the Madeira, Purús, Tapajós, and Xingu Rivers are all tributaries of the Amazon River.

At the same time, the Paraguay River crosses the Pantanal. Brazil's northern region is expected to maintain intense drought conditions, according to ANA data.

In the meantime, the National Center for Natural Disasters (Cemaden), warned that nearly 50 cities in Maranhão were facing severe drought. Cemaden's declaration spared the Madeira River this time around because it was mentioned in previous warnings in 2024 while the situation is unprecedented for the other four.

Ironically, this year when the State of Rio Grande do Sul was impacted by major floods, 26% of Brazil's territory suffered the consequences of extreme drought, which is believed to be the result of climate change.

In this scenario, Brazil's Federal Government has adopted an ambiguous position. While recognizing the critical scenario, it is cutting the monitoring budgets.

Climate Change Secretary André Lima said he believed that climate changes were here to stay and that droughts and floods would become more frequent and intense