The Ranchería River ( es, Río Ranchería) is a
river
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater
Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...
located in northern
La Guajira Department,
Colombia. Born in the
Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta
The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (English: ''Snow-Covered Mountain Range of Saint Martha'') is an isolated mountain range in northern Colombia, separate from the Andes range that runs through the north of the country. Reaching an elevation of ...
southern steps flows south, abruptly turns northeast and then north where it finally flows into the
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...
. It is the main river of La Guajira Department and has great significance for the
Wayuu people.
A large dam, the "El Cercado", was first proposed in the 1950s in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains, as an irrigation source for agribusiness and for the population of at least nine municipalities. The Sierra Nevada Indigenous communities protested the dam, which they regarded as a systematic appropriation of the river by landowners and the coal mining industry (the world's largest open-pit coalmine,
Cerrejón, is allowed around 16% of the river's volumetric flow). It was completed in the mid 2000s (picture)
The river flows down to a region of water scarcity in the semi-desert lowlands to the north and west. Four water management phases were
envisaged, but by 2021 only dam construction has been completed and pipelines for irrigation, which are not connected. Irrigation connections, aqueducts and a seven megawatts hydroelectric plant are programmed but there are significant accusations that they have been uncompleted due to corruption and mismanagement.
2007 floods
On April 22, 2007, the Rancheria river flooded the municipality of
Manaure in
La Guajira after three or four days of continuous precipitation. The town of Manaure suffered floods in 24 neighborhoods and some 30 communities in the rural area of the municipality and also affected sections of the municipality of
Riohacha
Riohacha (; Wayuu: ) is a city in the Riohacha Municipality in the northern Caribbean Region of Colombia by the mouth of the Ranchería River and the Caribbean Sea. It is the capital city of the La Guajira Department. It has a sandy beach wa ...
. Flood victims (some 1,250 families, mostly pertaining to the
Wayuu ethnic group) had to be evacuated on boats and jet skis by the
Colombian Red Cross
The Colombian Red Cross is a Colombian-based nonprofit private entity member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Society. It has been a member since 1922. The Colombian Red Cross embraces the principles of the International Red Cros ...
and the
Colombian Civil Defense
Colombian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Colombia
* Colombians, persons from Colombia, or of Colombian descent
**For more information about the Colombian people, see:
*** Demographics of Colombia
*** Indigenous ...
due to the difficult conditions in the area. They also delivered medical and food supplies. The
Governor of La Guajira
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...
José González, was also present in the area and asked the
national government A national government is the government of a nation.
National government or
National Government may also refer to:
* Central government in a unitary state, or a country that does not give significant power to regional divisions
* Federal governme ...
for assistance and aid.
El Tiempo: Desbordamiento del río Ranchería afecta a 1.250 familias de La Guajira
(Flooding of Rancheri River affects 1,250 families in La Guajira)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rancheria River
Rivers of Colombia