Conflicts over water in Brazil

Abstract

Water resource management must resolve problems about water scarcity in territory. Therefore, the way water resources are being managed in Brazil has not mitigated or resolved the resulting conflicts, quite the contrary, the hierarchical structures linked to the water resource management system have strengthened the performance of hegemonic groups. This article aims to understand the conflicts generated from the appropriation of water resources are related to the economic mineral-agroexporter, consolidating Brazil in a privileged situation in the context of underdevelopment in the world division of labor. For this purpose, the description and cartography of conflicts over water in Brazil made available by the Comissão Pastoral da Terra -CPT (organization linked to catholic church that catalogue data about conflicts over land in Brazil). Water has been the target of huge demands for grain production, and livestock in the Midwest, irrigated fruit in humid valleys in the Northeast Semi-Arid, expansion of the hydroelectric sector in the North of the country and impact resulting from mining activities in Bahia and Minas Gerais. It is necessary to discuss alternatives to a growth model that causes an increase in water scarcity and may, in the near future, restrict the right to clean water at an affordable cost for most Brazilians.