Fires advance in the Paraná river

delta in Argentina

The advance of the fires in the islands of the Paraná river delta, which plunged the city of
Rosario under an intense cloud of smoke, worries the authorities and the inhabitants of the
region, who demand investigation into the origin of the flames.

Some 8,000 outbreaks of fire have consumed an area of more than 530 kilometers since last
February, according to the environmental non-governmental organization Naturalistas
Santafesinos. This is a common practice of farmers, who burn land each year to allow the
renewal of grasslands for the livestock production in the area.

This year, the flames burned more hectares than usual because of a notable drop in the flow of
the Paraná River, at its lowest levels in several decades, which exposed more land where
pastures grew and dried up several streams that previously cut the advance of fire.

Thousands of people protested this Saturday against the fires on the islands and cut off traffic
on the bridge that connects the cities of Rosario (Santa Fe) and Victoria (Entre Ríos) over the
Paraná river.

“Enough burning, wetlands law now,” was the motto of the massive protest called by the
Multisectorial for the Wetlands Law.
ENVIRONMENTAL TRAGEDY

The Environment Minister, Juan Cabandié, assured that “what is happening in the Paraná delta
is a tragedy.”

Those responsible for this ecocide are threatening biodiversity and the health of people,” said
the official, who called on Justice to “end this situation that is causing so much damage.”

Justice summoned seven individuals, identified as owners of the burned land, while seven
others were already charged for the first fires that occurred in February and March in the same
area.

The islands are located in the province of Entre Ríos, on the east bank of the Paraná River, in
front of Rosario, the third most important city in Argentina.

The Paraná delta integrates a large wetland system with a rich biodiversity of more than 700
species of plants, 47 species of mammals and 270 of birds, in addition to various types of
reptiles and numerous species of fish.

These wetlands cover some 17,500 square kilometers in the provinces of Entre Ríos, Santa Fe
and Buenos Aires, in the so-called Plata basin, and it is one of the main aquifer reserves in the
region.

VOCABULARY

1) Match the words in English with their meaning in Spanish. Then, underline the words
in the text in the form that they appear.

- advance (v) - renovación

- worry (v.) - más bajo

- burn (v) - tierra, terreno

- land (n) - secar

- allow (v) - avanzar

- renewal (n) - humedal, pantano

- grasslands (n) - preocuparse

- lowest (adv) - pradera, pastizal

-wetlands (n) - quemar

- dry up (v) - permitir, dejar

- cut (v) - daño

- burnings (n) - salud

- law (n) - cortar

- motto (n) - reserva acuífera

- threaten (v) - ley

- health (n) - lema, eslogan, mensaje

- damage (n) - quemas

- aquifer reserve (n) - amenazar

2) Underline these words in the text. Then choose the correct meaning for this context.

- basin (n): palangana / fregadero / cuenca / lavamanos.

- bank (n): banco (entidad financiera) / banco (para sentarse)/ orilla / ladera.

- traffic (n): tránsito (tráfico de autos) / tráfico (actividad ilegal).

- outbreak (n): brote (de una enfermedad) / estallido, foco (de violencia o de algo
explosivo).

3) Fill in the gaps using words from the text.

1. An .....……….... is a person or animal that lives permanently in a place. ( paragraph 1)

2. An ...………….... is a piece of land surrounded by water. ( paragraph 1)

3. To .......………... is to show that you disagree with something. (paragraph 4)

4. A .………...... is low land that is often covered with water from a lake, river or sea next to it.
(paragraph 5)

5. The ...………....... is the air, water and land in or on which people, animals and plants live.
( paragraph 5)

6. ..………........ is the number and types of plants and animals that exist in a particular place.
(paragraph 7)

4) Mark the following sentences T (true) or F (false). Correct the false sentences.

1. The government is not worried about the fires. ____

2. The fire started un February. ____

3. The level of the Paraná River is higher than last year. ____

4. Not many people demostrated against the fires. ____

5. The protesters asked for a law. ____

6. Biodiversity and the health of people are in danger because of the fires. ____

7. Rosario is the most important city in Argentina. ____

8. The wetland system covers around 700 square kilometers. ____

5) Answer the questions.

1. What extension of land has been burned since last February?

____________________________________________________________________________

2. Why have more kilometers of wetlands been burned this year?

____________________________________________________________________________

3. What did people do to protest against the fires on the islands?

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4. How many people have been charged for the fires so far?

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