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The Parana watershed is located in South America. The land that makes up this watershed is diverse, with cities, agriculture, and various climates. The watershed is vital to the lives of South Americans and has biodiverse rivers and streams, like the Parana river. Though known for it's biodiversity, the Parana watershed suffers from the interference of humans. There are many ways South Americans can  reduce their impact on the Parana watershed and still benefit from it's resources.

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The Parana watershed stretches across Uruguay, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina (WRI 1998). It is the second largest watershed in South America covering 2,582,672 square kilometers (WRI 1998). Below is a link to additional information on the size, proximity, and uses of the Parana Watershed.
http://pdf.wri.org/watersheds_2000/watersheds_samerica_p2_157.pdf

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There are many different climates across the continent of South America. Within the Parana watershed there are mostly tropical, savanna, and wetland climates. Northern areas of the watershed are more tropical, the mid-section has a lot of wetlands, and the South is drier (Water and Global Change). Below is a link to a map of South America's various climates.
https://huxley.wwu.edu/files/smart_a.pdf
Photo retrieved from: https://www.internationalrivers.org/campaigns/paraguay-paraná-hidrovia

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Rainfall in South America varies depending on the climate. The highest amount of rainfall in South America is during the summer. North eastern areas of the watershed get the most rainfall, at approximately 251-400 mm on average for the month of January (Water and Global Change).
http://www.waterandclimatechange.eu/rainfall/parana-river-basin-rainfall-in-average-year

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As a part of the Parana watershed, the Parana River flows through Bolivia, Argentina, and Paraguay. It is the second longest river in South America. The river provides food, water, and energy to millions of South American people (Water and Global Change). Below is a timelapse video of sailing down the Parana river.

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[Sailing Through] The Parana River, South America

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The Parana River is known for being very biodiverse. Long term ecological research done on the river found almost 3,000 species living in and around the river (Agostinho et al. 2004). Below is a link to a list of fish species found in the Parana River. https://fish.mongabay.com/data/ecosystems/Parana.htm
Image of Dorado fish retrieved from: https://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2016/aug/07/fishing-dorado-numbers-surge-spearfish-caught/#

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Much of the land in the Parana watershed is used for agriculture. According to the World Research Institute (1998), about 45% of the Parana watershed is made up of cropland, 36% is grasslands, and only 4% is developed. As seen below, a lot of the land in this area is undeveloped.
Image retrieved from: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/77444/parana-river-floodplain-brazil

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Agriculture is an important part of life on the Parana watershed. According to Agriacorp (2019), South America is one of the leaders in agriculture and accounts for around 10% of agricultural export in the world. Farm products in the Parana Watershed are transported using the Parana river. (Encyclopedia, 2019)
Image retrieved from: https://www.britannica.com/place/Parana-River/media/443063/3450

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According to the Encyclopedia Britannica (2019), the lower Parana river is used to irrigate the surrounding farmland. This would impact the quality of water through runoff of pesticides and other waste. Below is a link to a National Geographic  article that describes similar types of irrigation in rural areas.
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/irrigation/

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According to Agriacorp (2019), livestock is also an important part of the South American culture. Cattle and sheep are among some of the livestock commonly found within the Parana watershed. New technology, techniques, pesticides, and other man-made resources help South Americans to sow land that would otherwise be barren (Agriacorp, 2019).
Photo retrieved from: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-30210749

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There are many cities along the Parana River and within the watershed. According to the World Research Institute (1998), there are 54 large cities in the Parana watershed. Three of South America's largest cities, Brasilia, Buenos Aries, and Sao Paulo, are along the Parana river (Water and Global Change). The video below refers to Buenos Aries as, "One of the most vibrant city destinations in the world" (The Economist 2016).

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Discover Buenos Aires: slabs of meat, Malbec and polo | The Economist

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Many people rely on the Parana watershed for survival. The population density of the Parana watershed in World Research's 1998 report was 23 people per square kilometer. These people rely on the watershed for their food, water and energy. Unfortunately, the demand for these resources has caused human interference to negatively impact the watershed. This article in National Geographic is about the cultural geography of the South American people, describing their religious practices, history, and vibrant culture.
Image retrieved from: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/south-america-human-geography/

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With the large cities and farmland that occupy the Parana watershed, it is not a surprise that waste and other substances from humans pollute the water. Studies done by Ronco et al. (2015), found high levels of compounds such as AMPA and glyphosate in areas of the Parana river that had a lot of agriculture. Glyphosate comes from herbicides used in farming. These and other pollutants make the water in the Parana watershed unsafe to drink.

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The Parana river has many dams which help to regulate the water and store it for human use. This is one hard solution to restoring water quality and making it accessible. Another option would be to take steps to sanitize the river. This would be very expensive and be extremely difficult considering the size of the Parana river.

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Herbicides are a large part of the pollution in the Parana river. Developing less harmful herbicides and pesticides to use on farmlands would be another hard solution to reduce the pollution in the Parana watershed. Simply, reducing the use of herbicides and pesticides would also be beneficial in reducing pollution.
Image retrieved from: http://www.panna.org/gmos-pesticides-profit/big-ags-dirty-little-secret

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A less expensive route to reducing the pollution in the Parana watershed would be for South Americans to make lifestyle changes. They can reduce their impact by driving less, which reduces the emission of greenhouse gases and runoff from gasoline into bodies of water. This would be an especially effective lifestyle change for those living in large South American cities, where there is heavy traffic. Image retrieved from: https://discoverbuenosaires.com/driving-in-buenos-aires

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South Americans can also use proper disposal of human and animal waste to improve the quality of the water within the Parana watershed. By reducing runoff of wastes from humans, animals, and gasoline it lowers the nutrient levels in the water, which will help improve the water quality and benefit the life within it.

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Dams are used to regulate and store water, as well as create energy in the Parana watershed. They improve the quality of water and make it accessible to humans. According to records taken by the World Research Institute, there were 29 dams in the watershed in 1998. This includes the Itaipu dam, which is the second largest in the world.

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As seen below, these dams are impressive feats of human advancement, but they interfere with the natural systems of the Parana watershed.
Below is a link to a video of the Itaipu dam, which is a part of the Parana watershed. According to this video posted by Strange and Extreme (2013), the Itaipu dam is the "largest hydroelectric complex in the world."

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The Largest Hydroelectric Complex In The World / Dam Itaipu

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Dam Itaipu on the border of Paraguay and Brazil Composition hydro power plant: Combined dam total length 7235 m, a width of 400 m and a height of 196 m; Concrete spillway with a maximum flow of 62 200m ³/s; Brazilian part of the dam is equipped with fish passage channel.

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According to Agostinho et al. (2004), dams have the most severe impact on the regulation of the Parana and other rivers within the watershed. This is because they interfere with the river's natural systems (Agostinho et al. 2004). Dams are a barrier for the 100's of fish species that swim upstream. These large man mad complexes ultimately damage and disrupt the river's natural habitat.

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While dams are a solution to water storage and quality, they interfere with the natural system of the Parana watershed. One hard solution to this would be making the dams less harmful to the environment. Areas of the rivers and streams could also be re-routed or culverts built to allow fish to migrate more easily, even with the presence of the dams.

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In order to reduce the impact of dams, South Americans could also invest in other alternative forms of energy. For example, wind energy has less of an impact on the environment than large dams. In addition, restoration of the riparian zones of the bodies of water effected by human and animal interference could help improve the natural systems of the watershed.
This video by the U.S. Deparment of Energy (2014) shows how wind turbines channel wind into clean energy.

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Effects of Climate Change on the Parana Watershed

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Effects of Climate Change on the Parana Watershed

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One of the major effects climate change could have on the Parana watershed is an increase in flooding due to more rainfall (Adam et al., 2014). The watershed is naturally regulated by floods, but an increase could impact the cities within the watershed and the natural regulation of the bodies of water (Agostinho 2004). Below is a video of flooding of the Iguazu Falls in the Parana watershed.

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Intense flooding turns scenic Iguazu Falls into water inferno

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While human interference is a threat to the Parana watershed, it is still very biodiverse and providing food, water, and energy to millions. It is a vital resource to South Americans, but dams and pollution are harmful to it's rivers and streams. By making changes in lifestyle and investing in hard solutions, South Americans can continue to live a sustainable life on the beautiful Parana Watershed.

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Adam, K. N., Fan, F.M., Pontes, P.R., Bravo, J.M., Collischonn W. (2014) Climate Change and Floods in Parana River Basin. 6th International Conference on Flood Management. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul. Retrieved from: http://eventos.abrh.org.br/icfm6/proceedings/papers/PAP014788.pdf
Agostinho, A. A.,  S. M. Thomaz, C.V. Minte-Vera, K.O. Winemiller. Biodiversity in the High Parana River Floodplain. Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas. Retrieved from: ftp://goldfish.nupelia.uem.br/users/agostinhoaa/publications/095-GOPAL-Agostinho-etal.pdf

Agostinho, A. A., S.M. Thomaz, L.C. Gomes. (2004) Threats For Biodiversity in the Floodplain in the Upper Parana River: Effects of Hydrological Regulation by Dams. University of Maringa, Nupelia. Retrieved from:  ftp://goldfish.nupelia.uem.br/users/agostinhoaa/publications/139-EH-Agostinho-etal.pdf
Agria Corp. (2019) South American Market. Agria. Retrieved from: http://www.agriacorp.com/market.asp?id=10
Encyclopedia Britannica (2019) Parana River. Retrieved from: https://www.britannica.com/place/Parana-River

Ronco, A.E., D.J.G. Marino, M. Abelando, P. Almada, C.D. Apartin. (2016) Water Quality of the Main Tributaries of the Parana Basin: Glyphosate and AMPA in Surface Water and Bottom Sediments. Springer International Publishing, Switzerland. Retrieved from: https://www.foroambiental.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/ronco2016-Glifo-parana.pdf
Strange and Extreme. (2013) The Largest Hydroelectric Complex in the World. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm3W0luzVJE

Water and Global Change. Parana River Basin. WATCH. Retrieved from: http://www.waterandclimatechange.eu/river-basin/parana

World Resources Institute (1998). Parana Watershed. Retrieved from: http://pdf.wri.org/watersheds_2000/watersheds_samerica_p2_157.pdf