The Rio Salado Basin in Argentina: An Integrated Master Plan

Being close to Buenos Aires and with high production levels in the agriculture sector, the Rio Salado basin is an area which has always attracted investment. During the last century, considerable hydraulic drainage and flood-alleviation works were carried out to increase agricultural production in the region. However, during the last two decades, the catastrophic effects of flooding and the persistence of low agricultural productivity in most of the area, demonstrate that the interventions (which have been made so far) have been inadequate. Perhaps one of the key factors in the lack of success of historic hydraulic interventions has been the absence of a strategic/ integrated approach. This paper describes the first attempt at integrated river-basin planning in Argentina.