The Rio dos Sinos watershed: an economic and social space and its interface with environmental status

Abstract

The Rio dos Sinos watershed is located in the eastern region of the state of Rio Grande do Sul and includes 32 municipalities. These municipalities develop several different economic activities such as farming and livestock along the 190 km length of the Rio dos Sinos, one of the rivers with the worst quality of water in Brazil. The region is also characterised by growing urbanisation and heavy industrialisation. The main economic activity is the leather and footwear industry. This diversified land use puts the Rio dos Sinos watershed at risk of a wide range of potential environmental impacts. The aim of the present article is to discuss the socioeconomic process currently implemented in the Rio dos Sinos watershed and the effect of these human actions on the environmental quality described throughout this special issue of the Brazilian Journal of Biology.Keywords: Rio dos Sinos watershed, environmental impact, socioeconomic characterization. A bacia hidrográfica do Rio dos Sinos: um espaço econômico e social e sua interferência na situação ambiental ResumoA bacia hidrográfica do rio dos Sinos está localizada na região leste do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul e inclui 32 municípios. Esses municípios desenvolvem diferentes atividades econômicas diversas, como a agricultura e a pecuária ao longo dos 190 km de extensão do rio dos Sinos, um dos rios com qualidade de água mais baixa no Brasil. A região também é caracterizada pela crescente urbanização e intensa industrialização. A principal atividade econômica é a indústria do couro e do calçado. Esta ocupação diversificada coloca a bacia do rio dos Sinos em risco de uma vasta gama de potenciais impactos ambientais. O objetivo do presente artigo é discutir o processo socioeconômico implementado atualmente na bacia hidrográfica do rio dos Sinos e os efeitos dessas ações humanas sobre a qualidade ambiental descrita ao longo desta edição especial da Revista Brasileira de Biologia.Palavras-chave: bacia hidrográfica do Rio dos Sinos, impacto ambiental, caracterização socioeconômica.

The effects of press and pulse disturbance by long and short-term pollution on the fish community in the Sinos River, RS, Brazil

“…The total extension is 190 km. The drainage area is approximately 3.800 km 2 (Figueiredo et al, 2010). The headwaters are located at 700 m above sea level (a.s.l.)…”

“…The Sinos River basin is a national centre of leather processing industries, including tanneries and shoe production facilities (Figueiredo et al, 2010). Additionally metallurgic factories are concentrated in the urban areas.…”

Integrated Environmental Assessment of streams in the Sinos River basin in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

“…The Sinos River basin (SRB) is located in the eastern region of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, and covers 32 towns with different economic activities, such as industry, agriculture and cattle raising, along the 190 km of the Sinos River, one of the main water courses in the basin and the river with the poorest water quality in Brazil (Figueiredo et al, 2010). Among the main affluents of the Sinos River are the EstânciaVelha/Portão (municipalities of Estância Velha and Portão), the Pampa (municipality of Novo Hamburgo) and the Schmidt (municipality of Campo Bom) streams, located in the lower section of the basin and draining important urban centres in the metropolitan area of Porto Alegre.…”

Endocrine disruptors in water filters used in the Rio dos Sinos Basin region, Southern Brazil

“…In the Rio dos Sinos basin, one of the most polluted rivers in Brazil (Figueiredo et al, 2010;FEPAM, 2013), the water used to carry those effluents is the same used as for the population water supply for approximately 1.2 million inhabitants, as described elsewhere (Figueiredo et al, 2010). The traditional primary and secondary water treatment is not efficient to remove these kinds of compounds (Auriol et al, 2006).…”