Río de la Plata Basin Platine Region | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of theParaná Delta within the Río de la Plata basin, north ofBuenos Aires | |
 Map of the Río de la Plata basin in South America, with major cities and rivers marked | |
| Coordinates:32°15′S59°30′W / 32.250°S 59.500°W /-32.250; -59.500 | |
| Location | South America |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3,170,000 square kilometres (1,220,000 sq mi) |
| Major rivers | Río de la Plata,Paraná River,Uruguay River,Paraguay River |
TheRío de la Plata basin (Spanish:Cuenca del Plata,Portuguese:Bacia do Prata), more often called theRiver Plate basin in scholarly writings,[1] sometimes called thePlatine basin[2] orPlatine region,[3] is the 3,170,000-square-kilometre (1,220,000 sq mi)[4]hydrographical area inSouth America that drains to theRío de la Plata. It includes areas of southeasternBolivia, southern and centralBrazil, the entire country ofParaguay, most ofUruguay, and northernArgentina. Making up about one fourth of the continent's surface, it is the second largestdrainage basin in South America (after theAmazon basin) and one of the largest in the world.[5]
The main rivers of the La Plata basin are theParaná River, theParaguay River (the Paraná's main tributary), and theUruguay River.[6]
The La Plata basin is bounded by theBrazilian Highlands to the north, theAndes Mountains to the west, andPatagonia to the south. The watershed extends mostly northward from the source of the Río de la Plata for roughly 2,400 kilometres (1,500 mi), as far asBrasília andCuiabá in Brazil andSucre in Bolivia, spanninglatitudes between 14 and 37 degrees south andlongitudes between 43 and 67 degrees west. The Paraná River, La Plata's largest tributary, is South America's second longest river andone of the longest in the world.
Politically, the basin includes part or all of theBrazilian states ofMato Grosso,Goiás,Minas Gerais,São Paulo,Mato Grosso do Sul,Paraná,Santa Catarina, andRio Grande do Sul; theBolivian departments ofSanta Cruz,Chuquisaca andTarija; the entire country of Paraguay; the western and centraldepartments of Uruguay; and theArgentine provinces ofJujuy,Salta,Formosa,Chaco,Misiones,Tucumán,Santiago del Estero,Santa Fe,Corrientes,Córdoba,Entre Ríos,Buenos Aires, andLa Pampa.
The precipitation falling within this area is collected by numerous rivers to finally reach theRío de la Plata, almost all of it through theParaná River, theParaguay River, and theUruguay River, La Plata's most importanttributaries.[7] The river discharges water into the Atlantic Ocean at an average rate of 22,000 cubic metres per second (780,000 cu ft/s), the majority of which comes from the Paraná.
The basin serves as the recharge zone for theGuarani Aquifer, one of the world's largestaquifer systems. The rivers of the La Plata Basin carry an estimated 57,000,000 cubic metres (2.0×109 cu ft) ofsilt into the Río de la Plata each year, where the muddy waters are stirred up by winds and tides; the shipping route from the Atlantic to Buenos Aires is kept open by continualdredging.
The Paraná River's main tributaries include theParanaíba River,Grande River,Tietê River,Paranapanema River,Iguazu River, Paraguay River, and theSalado River, after which it ends in the largeParaná Delta. The Paraguay River flows through thePantanal wetland, after which its main tributaries include thePilcomayo River and theBermejo River, before it ends in the Paraná. The Uruguay's main tributaries include thePelotas River,Canoas River,Ibicuí River, and theRío Negro. Another significant tributary to the Río de la Plata is theSalado del Sur River.
The Río de la Plata Basin has been the site of much conflict in the modernhistory of South America, much of it because the basin contained the (contested) frontiers between thePortuguese andSpanish Empires in South America and their successor states. A series of wars has been fought over territorial control in the region, particularly in the nineteenth century.
ExplorerSebastian Cabot made a detailed study of the Río de la Plata and its tributaries and gave the river its modern name. He explored the Paraná and Uruguay rivers between 1526 and 1529, ascending the Paraná as far as the present-day city ofAsunción, and also explored up the Paraguay River. Cabot acquired silver trinkets trading with theGuaraní near today's Asunción, and these objects gave rise to the name Río de la Plata, "river of silver".[4]
The first European colony in the Platine region was the city ofBuenos Aires, founded byPedro de Mendoza on 2 February 1536. This settlement, however, was quickly abandoned; the failure to establish a settlement on the La Plata estuary led to explorations upriver and the founding of Asunción in 1537. Buenos Aires was subsequently refounded byJuan de Garay on 11 June 1580.[4]
During the colonial era because of the lack of precious metals, the Platine basin was largely neglected by theSpanish Empire until the XVIII century when Portugal, after the founding ofColonia del Sacramento and the colonization ofRio Grande do Sul, and Britain threatened to expand into the estuary.[4] The Spanish colonies in the region were separated from theViceroyalty of Perú and formed into a newViceroyalty of the Río de la Plata in 1776 with the capital city inBuenos Aires. During theNapoleonic Wars, Spain became an ally of the French, and Britaininvaded the region in 1806–1807 unsuccessfully.
Conflict in the region intensified after theindependence of the former Spanish andPortuguese colonies in the first quarter of the 19th century. Territorial interests and navigation rights in the Platine region were at issue in many armed conflicts throughout the century, including theArgentine Civil Wars, theCisplatine andPlatine wars, and theParaguayan War.[4]
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There are several hydroelectric dams operating in the basin, among them the third largest operating facility in the world,Itaipu, shared between Paraguay and Brazil on the Paraná River; the 21st,Ilha Solteira Dam in Brazil, on the Paraná; the 25th, theYacyretá Dam shared between Paraguay and Argentina, also on the Paraná; and the 53rd, theItumbiara Dam in Brazil on theParanaíba River.
Also on the Paranaíba in Brazil are theEmborcação andSão Simão dams. On the Paraná in Brazil also are theEngineer Souza Dias and theEngineer Sérgio Motta dams.
On theGrande River in Brazil are theÁgua Vermelha,Furnas,Peixoto,Marimbondo,Luiz Barreto,Jaguara, andVolta Grande dams.
On the Iguazu river in Brazil are theBento Munhoz,Ney Braga,José Richa,Salto Santiago, andSalto Osório hydroelectric power plants. On the Pelotas river in Brazil, it is theMachadinho Hydroelectric Power Plant.
TheSalto Grande Dam is on the Uruguay River and it is shared between Uruguay and Argentina. Also on the Uruguay River but in Brazilian territory is theItá Hydroelectric Power Plant.
On the Negro River, in Uruguay, there are the Rincon del Bonete or Gabriel Terra Reservoir, and the Baygorria and Constitucion dams.
The dialect ofSpanish spoken in the lower Río de la Plata basin isRioplatense Spanish, named for the river. The Platine region is the birthplace of thetango dance and music.
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