El Niño-Driven Paraná River Surge Forces Itaipú and Yacyretá to Open Floodgates
Cubierto por 3 fuentesPublicado
- infobae movantEl Niño golpea el litoral: abrieron las compuertas de la represa de Itaipú y preocupa su impacto en el río Paraná
- bichos del campoÉxodo bovino correntino: Con los ríos Paraná y Uruguay en crecida, los productores comenzaron a sacar la hacienda de las islas y ya se teme un otoño sin pasto
- infobae movantSigue la alerta por inundaciones ante la crecida de los ríos Paraná y Uruguay: familias evacuadas y operativos de emergencia
- Argen Ports¿El “Super Niño” pone en riesgo a Itaipú y Yacyretá?
The large volume of rainfall in the Iguazú river basin, driven by the El Niño phenomenon, forced the opening of the floodgates at the Itaipú dam, shared by Brazil and Paraguay, and at Yacyretá, shared by Argentina and Paraguay. The measure seeks to ease the impact of the surge on the Paraná River, although it is raising concerns over its effects on riverside towns in Argentina's Litoral region.
Staggered Opening at Yacyretá
The Yacyretá Binational Entity (EBY) first activated the secondary spillway at Aña Cuá and then, on Monday afternoon, had to open the main spillway as well to “mitigate the effects of increased discharges from upstream power plants and the rainfall recorded across much of the basin.” The entity itself estimated that inflow could range between 29,000 and 32,000 cubic meters per second in the coming days, well above the historical average, which led to the preventive closure of the border crossing between Ituzaingó and Ayolas until Saturday, October 17.
Rising Water Levels in Corrientes and Entre Ríos
The immediate effect of opening the spillways was a rise in the river level at Ituzaingó, which reached 3.10 meters, close to the alert level of 3.50 meters. At Barranqueras, the Paraná River reached 5.31 meters, below the alert level of 6 meters, although the National Water Institute (INA) projected that the Corrientes-Barranqueras stretch could exceed the alert threshold from Thursday, October 15, with evacuations expected from Saturday, October 17. On the Uruguay River, the most critical situation occurred at Paso de los Libres, where Infobae Movant recorded 9.28 meters against an evacuation threshold of 8.50 meters, with at least 31 people evacuated, while Bichos del Campo measured 9.14 meters according to the INA and reported 37 people evacuated.
Impact on Island Livestock Farming
The surge is also hitting livestock production on the islands of Corrientes and Chaco. Producers have begun moving cattle out of areas such as Empedrado, Apipé Grande, Apipé Chico and Carrizal Norte due to the risk of water cutting off access routes, while Carlos Roldán, president of the Association of Rural Societies of Corrientes, warned that if the flooding extends into March or April, natural pastures will not have time to regrow, and winter could prove catastrophic for herds.
Debate Over Dam Capacity
An analysis published by Argen Ports noted that Itaipú has a spillway with a discharge capacity of around 62,000 cubic meters per second, while Yacyretá has a main spillway with 18 gates capable of handling approximately 55,000 cubic meters per second, plus the Aña Cuá arm with around 40,000 cubic meters per second, together far exceeding the flows recorded during this surge. The report emphasized that a major flood does not in itself imply a risk of collapse, but it called for a review of compliance with complementary works outlined in the 1973 binational treaties, such as compensating reservoirs, related to navigation and hydraulic regulation of the basin.
