Alto Paraná (; ''Upper Paraná'') is a department in

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

. The capital is

Ciudad del Este Ciudad del Este (, Spanish for Eastern City; often shortened as CDE) is the second-largest city in Paraguay and capital of the Alto Paraná Department, situated on the Paraná River. It is located 327 km east of Asunción, the capital, and i ...

(formerly known as Puerto Presidente

Stroessner Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda (; 3 November 1912 – 16 August 2006) was a Paraguayan politician, army general and military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in 1989. Known there as '' ...

, originally Puerto Flor de Lis). The Alto Paraná department has experienced tremendous economic and population growth in the past 50 years. Most of this growth has been concentrated in the department capital of Ciudad del Este, and mainly occurred after the construction of the Puente de la Amistad bridge in 1961, which connects

and Brazil. This department is home to the Itaipu power plant, which supplies 95% of the energy consumed by Paraguay, and the Acaray Dam. Several ecological reserves, a zoo and the

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

ese-Paraguayan Technology Park are situated in this department. The city of Presidente Franco was the first city founded in this department. Several important agricultural establishments are centered in the region of Minga Guazú which is home of the Guarani International Airport.

History

In colonial times, there were several settlements established in this area. The most important of these being Ontiveros, Ciudad Real, and Villa Rica del Espíritu Santo. Nevertheless, these villages did not initially prosper due to the constant attacks of the

Bandeirantes ''Bandeirantes'' (; ; singular: ''bandeirante'') were settlers in colonial Brazil who participated in expeditions to expand the colony's borders and subjugate Indigenous peoples in Brazil, indigenous peoples during the early modern period. T ...

. By the end of the 17th century and beginnings of the 18th century, many populations settled in this area due to the promising

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucksCuruguaty, Ygatimi, Caaguazú,

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

and Ajos. After the War against the Triple Alliance, these lands were sold, creating large states in which the most important economic activities were the exploitation of the local forests and the cultivation of

yerba mate Yerba mate or yerba maté (), ''Ilex paraguariensis'', is a plant species of the holly genus native to South America. It was named by the French botanist Augustin Saint-Hilaire. The leaves of the plant can be steeped in hot water to make a bev ...

. During the War Against the Triple Alliance many of the men of Paraguay died, and to make up for population loss, European/Middle Eastern and East Asian men immigrated to the nation. In this region, many descendants of Poles, Ukrainians, and Japanese people are found demographically similar to the neighboring Brazilian state of Paraná. There was also settlement of Brazilian from the South of Brazil, most of the people were white Brazilians of Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, German, Eastern European, Arabic blood. And Also Japanese Brazilians and Brazilians of mixed race. By the end of the 19th century, it was a very active port known as Tacurú Pucú, which means "high termite mound". This port was used for the transport of lumber, through the Paraná River, to Encarnación, and from Encarnación to facilitate the trade of food and textiles. After the TRI The department, as it is today, was created in 1945. In 1990, the department's structure was officially established.

Geography

Location

This department is located in the Oriental Region of Paraguay, between parallels 24° 30′ and 26° 15′ of latitude south and between the meridians 54° 20′ and 55° 20′ of longitude west. It is located in the Center East of Oriental Region. It is bordered by: * To the North: with Canindeyú Department * To the South: with

Itapúa Department Itapúa () is a department in the southern region of Paraguay. The capital is the city of Encarnación. It is divided into 30 districts, more than any other department in the country. History This department was created after the breakup of the ...

* To the East: with

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

and

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

* To the West: with Caaguazú and

Caazapá Caazapá () is a city in Paraguay, founded in 1607, by Friar Luis de Bolaños. It is located in the Caazapá District and is the capital of the Caazapá Department. There are five neighbourhoods called "Barrios" in the city: Then main one is the ...

departments The capital is Ciudad del Este, originally named Puerto Flor de Lis, and later Puerto Presidente Stroessner until it was renamed once more following the end of the dictatorial government of General

Alfredo Stroessner Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda (; 3 November 1912 – 16 August 2006) was a Paraguayan politician, army general and Military dictatorship, military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in 19 ...

. It is within the limits of the Brazilian city,

Foz do Iguaçu Foz do Iguaçu (; "Iguazu River mouth"), colloquially referred to as Foz, is the Brazilian city on the border of Iguaçu Falls. Foz in Portuguese language, Portuguese means the mouth or end of a river and Iguaçu in Guarani language, Guarani or Tup ...

Districts

The department is divided into 22 districts: ^* The districts of Doctor Raúl Peña and Tavapy were created after the 2002 Census, and therefore not displayed on the map. Alto Paraná has a combination of valleys and streams that come from the

Paraná River The Paraná River ( ; ; ) is a river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina for some ."Parana River". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2012. Web. ...

. It also has mountainous areas of high elevation that can reach 300 meters above sea level. The lands near the banks of the Paraná River have forests, which are threatened in the present by indiscriminate

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

. There are local efforts to combat this through the introduction of reforestation programs, with managed planting of different species of

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

Hydrography

The Paraná River is the most important supply of water for the department. The following are branches of this river: * Itambey * Ñacunday * Limoy * Itabo Guazú * Pira Pyta * Ycua Guazú * Acaray * Monday * Yacuy In this area, there are also several streams that help make the land fertile for

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

. These streams and rivers part due to the presence of large rocks that give origin to local waterfalls. Among these are the ones formed by the Monday and Ñacunday Rivers. The flow of the rivers Paraná and Acaray has been used in favor of constructing the hydroelectric power stations in Itaipú and Acaray.

Climate

Alto Paraná presents an absolute maximum temperature in summer of . The absolute minimum in winter is . The annual average is . The department receives abundant precipitation during the entire year, registered as annually. This total is the highest anywhere in Paraguay. Consequently, this area has a lot of humidity in the environment, which is good for agriculture. Fog and light rains are the norm in wintertime.

Economy

The logging industry remains to be the most important activity in the area. Nowadays, the population is also involved in the industrial process of different varieties of wood, such as: cedar, yvyra pyta, lapacho, taperyva guasu, petereby, guatambu, incense, guaica and others. Another important activity is the plantation of pine as a form of reforestation. There's also the clearing of palm hearts. About 700,000 hectares of land are utilized for agriculture.

Soy The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (''Glycine max'') is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean. Soy is a staple crop, the world's most grown legume, and an important animal feed. Soy is a key source of f ...

maize Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

mint Mint or The Mint may refer to: Plants * Lamiaceae, the mint family ** ''Mentha'', the genus of plants commonly known as "mint" Coins and collectibles * Mint (facility), a facility for manufacturing coins * Mint condition, a state of like-new ...

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

tangerine The tangerine is a type of citrus fruit that is orange in colour, that is considered either a variety of the mandarin orange (''Citrus reticulata''), or a closely related species, under the name ''Citrus tangerina'', or yet as a hybrid (''Citr ...

, sweet orange,

tomato The tomato (, ), ''Solanum lycopersicum'', is a plant whose fruit is an edible Berry (botany), berry that is eaten as a vegetable. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family that includes tobacco, potato, and chili peppers. It originate ...

manioc ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava, manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America, from Brazil, Paraguay and parts of the Andes. Although ...

sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its sizeable, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable, which is a staple food in parts of ...

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

carrot The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in colour, though heirloom variants including purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild ...

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown Hybrid (biology), hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit ...

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a species of large annual forb of the daisy family Asteraceae. The common sunflower is harvested for its edible oily seeds, which are often eaten as a snack food. They are also used in the pr ...

, pea and ka’a he’e (a sweetener and medical plant) are cultivated here. In this department cows, pigs, cebú, and nelore are raised by ranchers. This industry occupies a place of growing importance. There are factories of oil, food, sausages, sawmills, rice and yerba mills, of ceramic products, and also dairy products.

Education

Alto Paraná has institutions that impart initial, elementary and secondary education. Also there are institutions working to impart education to the natives of the area. There are private universities and the national university.

Communication

The most important ways of access to the department are Route No. 7 "Dr. Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia", that crosses the department from east to west and connects with

Asunción Asunción (, ) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of Asunción in the north ...

, and also the Route No. 6 "Juan León Mallorquín" that joins Encarnación with the southern region of the country. There is a route that connects Salto del Guairá to the north. An international bridge over the Paraná River connects Paraguay with Brazil. The " Guaraní International Airport", in the Minga Guazú district, offers regular flights to

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, and connections with other flights. The department has televisions stations. It has an automatic phone center, and mobile phone communication services. There are also several radio stations. AM: Radio Parque, Itapiru, Magnificat, America, Concierto, La voz de Hernandarias, Cedro Ty, Corpus and Minga Guazú. FM: Guarani, Progreso, Integración, Ciudad del Este, Virtual, Educacción, Yguazú, Naranjal, Transparaná, Pionera, Transcontinental, Santa Rita, Pentagrama and El Portal de Itapúa.

Tourism

This department offers a very rich and attractive natural environment, specially represented by the Acaray and Paraná Rivers. The following places are recommended to visit: * Tati Yupi Refuge * Itabó Natural Reserve * Limoy Natural Reserve * Ñacunday National Park * Pikyry Refuge * Carapá Refuge * The mouth of Itambey River * Minga Guazú Ecology Park * Mbaracayú Refuge Itaipu 171

Other touristic places are the modern engineering constructions that produce great admiration in the visitors, those are: the Amistad's Bridge, that communicates Paraguay and Brazil, the hydroelectric stations Itaipu Binacional and Acaray. In Ciudad del Este there are the Park and Lake of the Republic, an artificial lake formed by the waters of the Amambay stream, the park serves as lung for the city. This space was created with the collaboration of every city council of the country. Alto Paraná has several museums that exhibit artifacts of great scientific and cultural value, such as: * The House of Culture in Ciudad del Este * El Mensú Hydric Museum * Museum of Natural History * Itaipú Natural and Anthropology Museum The Museum Moisés Bertoni was declared Natural and Scientific Monument. This place is a port, where Moisés Bertoni accomplished to compile a great variety of plants from the entire world and who dedicated his life to the preservation of the nature.

References

External links

Alto Paraná Info (in Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alto Parana Department States and territories established in 1945