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| Sunday, 6 November 2005 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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From Abroad Amazon reaches its lowest ebb
Large parts of the Amazon rainforest are at their driest in living memory, a direct consequence, scientists say, of the severe hurricane season off the US Gulf coast. Rainfall has been significantly below average this year along the Rio Solimoes and the Rio Madeira, two of the major Brazilian tributaries that flow into the Amazon, causing water levels to drop to record lows. As a result, rivers and lakes are drying up, revealing huge sandbanks and making navigation difficult for boats. Since many towns are only accessible by river, some communities are running out of food, fuel and medicine. "There is no rain here because the air is descending, which prevents the formation of clouds", said Ricardo Dellarosa, of the Amazon Protection Organisation in Manaus. "It is because the air is rising very intensely in the North Atlantic, creating storms and hurricanes. What goes up must come down". Gilvan Sampaio of the National Institute of Space Research said the North Atlantic was slightly warmer than usual, which had shifted the tropical weather system further north. He added that cold fronts that usually came from the South of Brazil at this time of year had not been arriving. "These cold fronts have been heading straight into the ocean, instead of heading North towards the Amazon," he said. Although river levels in the Southwestern Brazilian Amazon are always low at this time of year, the scale of water shortage is much worse than usual, hitting previously unaffected areas. "It's the worst it's been in 60 years", said Elpidio Gomes da Silva Filho, head of the Administration of West Amazon Waterways. "The journey along the Madeira should take six days. Now it's taking 15 because only small boats can pass." The Association of Municipalities in Amazonas state describe the situation as critical in about 10 districts, which have a combined population of about 300,000 people in an area roughly the size of France. In towns such as Humaita, 400 miles South of Manaus on the Rio Madeira, the lush landscape has drastically changed. "A beach has been born in the middle of our town," said Jose Edmee Brasil, the president of the town council. "Before this year I'd never seen the river less than 10 metres deep-now it's only two metres. This is the biggest drought in our history". The Nation |
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