Situation at São Paulo water reservoirs still critical

Despite the downpours last weekend in the state of São Paulo, the situation at Cantareira, the system responsible for supplying water to the city of São Paulo remains critical, said on Wednesday (Jun 4) Vicente Andreu Guillo, head of the National Water Agency (“ANA”).

His statement was made during a Senate public hearing as he mentioned the likelihood of introducing water rationing in Brazil.

On June 10, Andreu Guillo is expected to meet with the Environment secretaries of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais in an effort to ascertain the impact that a connection between a tributary of the River Paraíba do Sul and the Cantareira System would cause on these three states, where the river runs through. “In my opinion, a requirement should be fulfilled in order to meet Rio’s demand, namely water security [enough supplies of drinking water], and I find it appropriate that this water should be used to meet the demand of São Paulo’s metropolitan region. There’s a technical solution for serving both states,” Guilo declared.

He believes the crisis in the Cantareira System stems from a range of factors: an exceptionally severe drought; the absence of works that should be carried out in the past, when the decision was made to increase financial gains at the expense of water security; and the need to improve regulations on Brazil’s water resources, especially in crisis scenarios.”

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira