Department of Potosí

See also: Potosí (homonymy)

The Département of Potosí is a department South of the Bolivia, having for capital the town of Potosí. It occupies most of the south of the Andean altiplano. It is limited, in north by the Département of Oruro, in the North-East by that of Cochabamba, in the east by those of Chuquisaca and Tarija. It occupies in Bolivia a strategic situation owing to the fact that it borders in the west the Chile and the south the Argentine, adjoining countries with whom it is in relation by road and shoed ways very important.

History

The department was created on the basis of the Intendance antique of Potosí of the Royal Audience of Charcas, thanks to the Supreme Decree of the January 23rd 1826, dictated by the Marshal of Ayacucho, Antonio Jose de Sucre.

Political division

Potosí is divided into 16 provinces:

Principal cities

Relief

Most of the relief of the department is mountainous, but in its center an important portion of typical top-plates of the Bolivian Altiplano is.

The department is made up in the east by the Bolivian central cordillera intersected with valleys, but having high tops. In south-east the cordilleras of Chichas and Lípez are, the latter container of very high summits (Uturunco with 6  008 m and Nuevo Mundo with 5  929 m).

In the west, the frontier Western cordillera of Chile has very high tops, also approaching the 6  000 meters, often volcanic, like Sairecábur (5  950 m), and the volcano Licancábur (5  916 m).

Between the two finally, the large dry steppe of the Bolivian Altiplano extends to approximately 3  500 meters of altitude.

Climate

Generally precipitations lower north in the south and is in the west, so that it is desert in the south-western provinces of Daniel Campos, Baldivieso, Nor Lípez and Sud Lípez as their very weak population (22  testifies some; 000 inhabitants for more 50  000 km ², are less than 0,5 habitants/km ²). In the Eastern cordillera (provinces of Charcas, Chayanta, Tomás Frías, Saavedra, Linares), one counts a great number of valleys which have extremely various microclimates and the area is well populated.

Of course, like everywhere on the Altiplano, the climate is fresh (average of 8°C) and can go down in winter to less 30°C.

Hydrography

Potosí has rivers which run towards the three large river basins of the pays :
  • the Amazonian basin, thanks to the ríos Caine, Chayanta and Guadalupe  ;
  • That of the Río of Plata with the ríos Pilcomayo, Motaca, Tumusla. The first is most important and counts moreover many affluents  ;
  • the basin endorrheic of the lakes Poopó and the Salars, closed basin of the altiplano, with Río Márquez which is thrown in the lake Poopó and the río Grande of Lípez which leads in the Salar de Uyuni   ; moreover, there are other minor rivers which form small lagoons or lakes salted like the lagoons Colorada and Verde.

Lagoons of the South Lípez

The Southern Lípez is located at the south-west of the department of Potosí. The lagoons, whose Laguna Verde are protected within the national Réserve from Andean fauna Eduardo Abaroa  :

External bonds

  • photographs and information on the Indian culture

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