The long journey to become \u27the river of national unity\u27: The Sao Francisco river basin from 1940s to 2008 and the interactions of environment, government and local citizens

In its 2,700 kilometers north and then eastern journey to the Atlantic Ocean, the Sao Francisco River of Brazil drains eight percent of the nation\u27s territory. The watershed is three and a half times the size of New England. This research investigates the impacts of the federal water resource management, or lack of it, on the riverine environment and on the life of the people who locally have depended on the ecosystem\u27s services of the river during the 1940s--2008 timeframe. A new legal instrument, the 1997 Water Policy, introduced a novel form of management regarding public participation, policy goals and ways of achieving them. The new policy mandates participation of multiple stakeholders\u27 groups in the governance of the water resources of Brazil bounded by natural over political jurisdictions. Nevertheless, the participation of the Sao Francisco River Basin Committee in the final outcomes of the management of the water body is still limited. This doctoral dissertation applied the Policy Sciences Analytic Framework, a tool for policy investigations, to map the problem and the decision and social processes. Ecological Sustainability and Ecosystem Approach are the theoretical components and criteria of analysis. This multi-method study is based upon qualitative field-based empirical and library research, a critical assessment of secondary literature, interviews and field observations. In the Sao Francisco River Basin, environmental and social costs have risen as development increased. The uses of the river have shifted from the local in the pre-1950s to the regional and international in the post-1950s era. The intensive employment of the water body for entrepreneurial purposes like hydro-businesses is rising. The 1997 Water Policy has not yet reversed the unsustainable ecological trend of the river system, which shows various indicators of stress. This dissertation written as a case study presents results based upon seven municipalities of the basin (Pirapora, Bom Jesus da Lapa, Juazeiro, Petrolina, Penedo, Santana do Sao Francisco and Brejo Grande)

The Implications of the “Virtual Water Trade” and Virtual Environmental Degradation Trade for the São Francisco River Basin in Brazil

Food production has an enormous impact on natural systems in both hydrological and ecological ways. In 2000, agriculture accounted for 67% of the total freshwater withdrawal in the world (UNEP, 2002). For the period of 1998-2002, that figure was 62% for Brazil (FAO, 2005). Water used in the production process of an agricultural or industrial good is ‘virtual water’ contained in the product. The ‘virtual water’ flow between nations is usually accompanied by a virtual environmental degradation current. Nations are exchanging surface and groundwater depletion, water pollution, soil erosion, and other negative externalities, which result from crop production. Such commerce involves trade-offs and unaccounted and unpaid environmental costs. Brazil has historically played the role of exporter of primary products, and consequently exports ‘virtual water’ to world food markets. The exportation of agricultural products causes a net transference of freshwater resources among regions and nations. I employ Hoekstra and Hung (2002)’s method to estimate the virtual water exported by the Rio São Francisco (SF) River Basin through grapes and mangos. What are the implications for semi-arid regions such as the Brazilian Northeast, which have chronically suffered from water shortage? What are other environmental consequences? This research analyzes the hydrological and ecological implications for local and regional systems resulting from selected primary sector activity taking into account virtual water transference and provides recommendations on more sustainable practices to reduce the loss of water and the environmental degradation of that river basin environment