The Transfert partial of water of Rio São Francisco consists of the construction of two channels, which will distribute the water of the Rio São Francisco in the intermittent rivers of the area north-eastern semi-arid of Brazil. The receiving basins are in four states: Ceará, Pernambouc, Paraíba and Rio Grande C Norte. It is a gigantic building site which causes many discussions.

History of the project

The idea of the project began under the reign from the Emperor Dom Pedro II at the XIXe century. He was seen as only solution with the frequent and often disastrous drynesses which affected the north-eastern country. Nevertheless one could not begin work fault from financial resources and especially from technical skills. Several decades later one took again the project, initially in 1943 pennies the presidency of Getúlio Vargas, then in 1994.

Description

The project consists in the transfer of a maximum flow of 127 m ³ /s. to reach the receiving basins, water will have to be high with EMU height 160 m to the top of the level of collecting, then will run through 2.000 km of channel and river in the open air. Important to announce that pumping will not be continuous, but will function only during the time of hydrous deficit in the area. Of this fact the average of the pumped quantities would be about 50 m ³ a second is more than one billion and half of tons per annum. In a modern economy, this quantity would be sufficient to feed a city of more than four million inhabitants.