This year's World Water Day, a report found that the Southeast and Midwest have lost vegetation cover the size of 15 So Paulo towns.
On World Water Day, a report by The Nature Conservancy Brazil highlights an environmental disaster that has a direct impact on water supply in the nation. The loss of natural vegetation in basins in Brazil's southeast and midwest regions reached 22,900 square kilometres between 1988 and 2017, according to the report, which might exacerbate water shortages in reservoirs in the Interconnected System.
Because of this, the recent shortage seasons may have been compounded by the long-term consequences on land use and change. Additionally, climate change, a rise in water usage, population expansion, and management centred on grey infrastructure works—civil engineering interventions that are mostly based on concrete—are all contributing issues.
More than 580 thousand square kilometres of natural vegetation were destroyed in this region between 1988 and 2017, and another 22.9 thousand square kilometres were lost in the same period. As an example of the scale of the damage in the last 30 years, consider the size of the state of So Paulo and its capital: the destroyed regions represent 10% of the state's size and 15% of the city's. Mapbiomas, a project that collects data on land use and habitation in Brazil, supplies the historical data used in the analysis.
When it comes to ensuring water security, Samuel Barreto of The Nature Conservancy Brazil stresses the need of maintaining or restoring hydrographic basins so that they remain healthy and adaptable to climate change, while preserving their natural roles.. Conservation and recovery of hydrographic basins will contribute to diverse uses and social equality and the quality of life of the inhabitants. The importance of water security in economic growth cannot be overstated.
For climate change adaptation and water supply, we need to go beyond the box of grey infrastructure." In order to ensure the long-term supply of water, with quality and quantity, for its many purposes, including agricultural and industrial operations, transportation, energy production, as well as for human consumption, the protection of watersheds is necessary.
Preserving the Serro River's watershed
Helena Flavia Marinho de Lima, an educator, artisan, and environmental activist, claims that water is the most abundant mineral in Minas Gerais. As a resident of So Gonçalo do Rio das Pedras in the Serro area, where the project "Salvando as guas do Serro" aims to bring attention to "this natural treasure and its potential for sustainable development," she is a member of the team behind the initiative.
Despite the abundance of springs, rivers, and underground aquifers in the state, Helena Lima believes it is imperative to transform the state's cultural norms, which are based on the belief that the water cycle (evaporation, clouds, and rain) is permanent. In order to ensure their profits and initiatives, "big organisations are racing to privatise water."
Activists stress the need of ensuring the long-term viability of life on Earth for current and future generations. "I assure you that I will leave mountains and mountains standing by safeguarding springs. Desertification will ensue if we remove the cerrado, woods, and mountains from our land. In order for a community to be sustainable, it must have access to water.