Inírida River Report card 2016 Inírida Barranco Tigre INÍRIDA RIVER Mountains of Mavicure Nukak Natural Reserve Puinawai Natural Reserve Biodiversity Knowledge Gap Index River dolphins Water quality index Risks to water quality Water supply & demand Human nutrition Mining in sensitive ecosystems Terrestrial connectivity Natural land cover Stable forest area Ecosystem services & L A N D S C A P E S E C O S Y S T E M S W A T E R C U L T U R E P E O P L E & B I O D I V E R S I T Y G O V E R N A N C E M A N A G E M E N T / I N Í R I D A R I V E R B A S I N H E A L T H B River dolphins The Inírida River is the main southern tributary in the Colombian portion of the Orinoco River with a length of 1,419 km. The river originates in the low plain forests of the transitional Amazon biome and is characterized primarily by rainforests and flooded forests. Some of the main threats to the Inírida are exploitation of natural resources, overfishing, alluvial mining, pollution, and solid waste dumping. Characteristics of the Inírida River Basin The Inírida River Basin received an overall B grade (68%). Of the nine indicators assessed, scores were excellent (>80%) for risk to water quality, water supply and demand, and for the all indicators within the category Ecosystems & Landscapes. However, the basin did have the lowest score in all of the Orinoco River Basin for human nutrition (31%) and moderate results for the water quality index (57%). The low score for human nutrition is likely due in part to the low richness of fish and therefore lower food supply as compared with other Andean sub-basins. The low water quality index can be attributed largely to limnology changes that result from The River maintains its natural integrity but its population faces challenges mining activities. Although no river dolphin data was analyzed for this version of the report card, due to lack of data around the Puinawai and Nukak Natural Reserves, new information on river dolphin abundance will become available soon for future report cards. What do the scores mean? 40–60% c 60–80% b 80–100% a 20–40% d 0–20% f no data
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Inírida River Report card 2016 Inírida
Barranco Tigre
INÍRIDA RIVER
Mountains of Mavicure
NukakNaturalReserve
PuinawaiNaturalReserve
BiodiversityKnowledgeGap Index
River
dolphins
Waterquality index
Risks towaterqualityWater supply
& demand
Human
nutrition Mini
ng in
sens
itive
ecos
yste
ms
Terr
estr
ial
conn
ectiv
ity
Natu
ral
land
cove
r
Stableforest area
Ecosystem
services
& LANDSCAPESECOSYSTEMS
WA
TER
CULTURE
PEOPLE &
BIO
DIV
ERSITY
GOVERNANCE
MANAGEMENT/
INÍRIDA RIVER
BASIN HEALTH
BRiver
dolphins
The Inírida River is the main southern tributary in the Colombian portion of the Orinoco River with a length of 1,419 km. The river originates in the low plain forests of the transitional Amazon biome and is characterized primarily by rainforests and flooded forests. Some of the main threats to the Inírida are exploitation of natural resources, overfishing, alluvial mining, pollution, and solid waste dumping.
Characteristics of the
Inírida River Basin
The Inírida River Basin received an overall B grade (68%). Of the nine indicators assessed, scores were excellent (>80%) for risk to water quality, water supply and demand, and for the all indicators within the category Ecosystems & Landscapes. However, the basin did have the lowest score in all of the Orinoco River Basin for human nutrition (31%) and moderate results for the water quality index (57%). The low score for human nutrition is likely due in part to the low richness of fish and therefore lower food supply as compared with other Andean sub-basins. The low water quality index can be attributed largely to limnology changes that result from
The River maintains its natural integrity but its population faces challenges
mining activities. Although no river dolphin data was analyzed for this version of the report card, due to lack of data around the Puinawai and Nukak Natural Reserves, new information on river dolphin abundance will become available soon for future report cards.
What do the scores mean?
40–60%c60–80%b
80–100%a20–40%d
0–20%fno data
For decades fishing has been the main activity for communities that live along the Inírida River, fish for consumption and commercially sold ornamental fish are fundamental to the subsistence of people in the region. The Inírida is also the most important source of ornamental fish species in the country. However, there have been sharp declines in fisheries due to overfishing, pollution and sedimentation related to unsustainable mining activities, and a lack of regulations for fishing harvests.
The Inírida Fluvial Star is the sixth Ramsar site in Colombia and the only one in the Orinoco River Basin. Its area extends 253,000 ha and it supports more than 900 plants, 253 birds, 470 fishes, 101 mammals, 86 reptiles, and 44 amphibians species. Bird and fish species in the Inírida Fluvial Star alone comprise 60% and 50% of all bird and fish species in the Colombian Orinoco River Basin.
The Ramsar site occupies a transitional zone between the Orinoco and Amazon basins and biomes and is where the Atabapo, Guaviare, and Inírida Rivers meet and flow into the Orinoco River. To complement the Ramsar designation, the Inírida Fluvial Star Roundtable was established as a formal institutional space between the Regional Environmental Authority and indigenous and farming communities. This roundtable created the participatory management plan and its implementation through local monitoring system with support of the National Fisheries Authority. WWF Colombia was instrumental in this process, and is now a leader facilitating relations between authorities and communities in the region.
The star of conservation and sustainable use in the Orinoco
The mountains of Mavicure are a highlight of the Inírida River.
Inírida River is home to important fisheries that are under increasing pressure
The extensive biological diversity found in the basin demands significant investments in biodiversity assessments and monitoring to supplement important yet fragmented biodiversity records. Additionally, information is needed on the state of river-related cultural values in order to include this indicator in subsequent report cards.
In the Inírida River, fishing is an important way of life.
