The Corumbá River (''Rio Corumbá'' in Portuguese) is the most important river in the
Central Plateau region of
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. Its source is in the Montes de Pireneus, near
Pirenópolis
Pirenópolis is a town located in the Brazilian state of Goiás. It is known for its waterfalls and Portuguese colonial architecture, and a popular festival involving mounted horses called Festa do Divino Espírito Santo which takes place 45 day ...
, state of
Goiás
Goiás () is a Brazilian state located in the Center-West region. Goiás borders the Federal District and the states of (from north clockwise) Tocantins, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso. The state capital is Goi ...
, near the boundary with the
Federal District
A federal district is a type of administrative division of a federation, usually under the direct control of a federal government and organized sometimes with a single municipal body. Federal districts often include capital districts, and they ...
and its length is 567 km. It receives the waters of the
Descoberto and
São Bartolomeu, which begin in the Federal District. There are plans to build a hydroelectric plant on this section of the river.
The Corumbá flows south from its source near
Corumbá de Goiás, where there are spectacular waterfalls, is crossed by a major bridge on the Brasília-Goiânia highway east of Alexânia, passing near
Pires do Rio and
Caldas Novas. To the south it enters the
Itumbiara Reservoir, the lake created by the
Itumbiara Dam on the
Paranaíba River
The Paranaíba River is a Brazilian river whose source lies in the state of Minas Gerais in the Mata da Corda mountains, municipality of Rio Paranaíba, at an altitude of 1,148 meters; on the other face of this mountain chain are the sources of t ...
, one of the main tributaries of the
Paraná River.
Near Caldas Novas the Corumbá is dammed and forms a large reservoir called
Corumbá Lake.
The Corumbá receives untreated sewage from several cities in Goiás. Its banks suffer the consequences of removal of sand and gravel in several points (in
Luziânia sand was removed to build
Brasília
Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...
). The loss of the natural forest and agricultural activity are responsible for negative impact on all the course of the river.
External links
The Corumbá waterfalls
Rivers of Goiás
{{Goiás-river-stub