Lake Poopó

The lake Poopó is a saline lake which extends on a surface from 1.340 km ² to 130 kilometers in the south from Oruro in Bolivia. On the other hand, when it is full, the lake occupies a surface of 2.500 km ². Located at an altitude of more or less 3.686 meters in the Altiplano, its average depth is of 2,4 meters.

Description

The Lac Titicaca feeds indirectly but partially the lake Poopó. Indeed, the lake Titicaca runs out via a single river, the Río Desaguadero which is then connected to the lake Poopó in which it flows. For the years 1960-1990, the medium flow of Desagudero was of 35 m ³ /s. But this quantity would be very insufficient to feed a lake of more than 1.300 km ², subjected moreover to strong evaporation. In fact Desaguadero grows bigger throughout its course thanks to its own affluents, so that the medium flow measured at the station of Chuquiña is of 89 m ³ /s, that is to say 54 m ³ /s moreover than with its birth, at the exit of Titicaca. Moreover several rivers flow immediately in the lake Poopó, independently of Río Desaguadero, whose Río Marquéz is most important.

Little before the lake Poopó, Desaguadero is divided into two arms. The left arm feeds the Lac Uru Uru, located very close to the town of Oruro, and whose emissary emerges in the lake Poopó. The left arm goes directly to the lake which it feeds too.

During the cast iron of the last Andean glacial period there are approximately 11.000 to 13.000 years, the lake Poopó belonged to a lake much larger called Ballivián. This enormous lake included the Salar de Coipasa, the Salar de Uyuni and the Lac Titicaca. These last years, the level of the lake Poopó dropped; the white trace around of it is the proof (one clearly sees it on the satellite photo). The level of the lake Titicaca also dropped, decreasing by this fact the water run-off in the Río Desaguadero. Moreover, one most of water evaporates because of the intense sun and the strong winds.

The part of not evaporated water of the lake Poopó is then drained by a small river which is at its south-western end, the Río Laca Jahuira which flows in its turn in the Salar de Coipasa.

System TDPS

One calls Système TDPS the hydrological unit consisted the lake Titicaca (and its many small affluents), the Río Desaguadero, the lake Poopó (and the lake Uru Uru) and the Salar de Coipasa. This system is shared between the Peru and the Bolivia which agree to take certain safeguard measures, when they are essential.

Hydrous assessment of the lake Poopó

As for all the lakes, the hydrous assessment of the Lake Poopó is the result of the equation following: entered quantities = quantities left , where the entries are distributed between the quantities brought by the whole of the affluents, plus the sum of the precipitations fallen on surface from the lake (more possibly of the underground contributions of water tables), and the exits are the evaporated, increased quantities flow of the emissary and losses by percolation or irrigation. The quantities are of course average quantities observed over one long period. These quantities are expressed per unit of times, which are generally the year or the second. Let us recall that 31.536.000 seconds ago in one year nonbissextile.

river Contributions; 2,6 billion m ³ /année either 82,5 m ³ /s
Rains on the lake: 0,6 billion m ³ /année either 19 m ³ /s
Other contributions: negligible
Evaporation: 3,1 billion m ³ /année either 98,3 m ³ /s
Infiltrations and another losses: 100 million m ³ /année either 3,2 m ³ /s
Flow of the emissary (the Río Laced Jahuira): negligible

To note that the evaporation undergone by the lake is about 1.800 mm per annum.

Ecology

Since 2002, Bolivia declared the lake Poopó, thus besides that its part of the lake Titicaca and the Lac Uru Uru, sites Ramsar the purpose of whose convention is to preserve the wetlands of planet.

The town of Huanuni, important mining center of the zone, located at the North-East, upstream of Poopó, but downstream from the lake Uru Uru, constitutes a worrying source of pollution by metal and different residues. One currently concentrates oneself on this serious problem.

Birds

It is a lake particularly attended by the flamingos, of which it lodges not less than three species, the Flamant of James still called flamingo of the puna, the Flamant of the Andes and the Flamant of Chile. Among the species resident, one finds there also the Nandou of Darwin ( Pterocnemia pennata ), the teal of the puna ( Anas puna ), the Grèbe microptère ( Rollandia will microptera ), the Ibis of the puna ( Plegadis ridgwayi ), the Condor of the Andes ( Vultur gryphus ), the Avocette of the Andes ( Recurvirostra andina ), it Plover of the puna ( Charadrius alticola ), the Metriopelia ceciliae , the Sicalis lutea , and the peak of the Andes ( rupicola ).

See too

the article on the Geography of Bolivia
the Salar de Coipasa and the Lake Coipasa
the article on the Río Desaguadero
the Lake Titicaca
the Ramsar Sites in Bolivia

Sources

partially translated Text of Wikipédia English, version of December 5th, 2005, consulted page on December 7th, 2005
and information of the lake Poopó: site of NASA with eol.jsc.nasa.gov, updated document on November 22nd, 2004, (consulted page on December 7th, 2005), http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/sseop/EFS/lores.pl?PHOTO=STS048-72-49
Ecology Site of Birdlife - description of the zone
Hydrologie Analyzes detailed Titicaca system - Poopó by the Organization of the American States
Hydrologie Program of fight against the dryness in the basin of the lake Poopó

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