Río Claro River Basin

The Río Claro River originates in the western mountain range between the limits of the cities of Buenaventura, Jamundí and Cali, in the Farallones de Cali National Natural Park. The river flows to the left of the Upper Cauca River Basin near the town of Paso de la Bolsa.

Río Claro River Basin

This image identifies three types of conflicts in different socio-ecosystems present in the basin. Conflict A and B are areas where multiple ES converge and where direct drivers are clear in using pastureland and urban settlements because of the demographic expansion of the municipality of Jamundí. Both drivers have repercussions because of poor or non-existent waste management, the loss of biodiversity, soil degradation, and the drying up of streams and bodies of water that drain into the CRB and later into the UCRB, both represented by cultural ES and regulation for communities.For conflict C, the relationship of the regulation and cultural ES on the Cauca River is marked, which is affected by indirect drivers caused by the dynamics of the different upstream urban metabolisms, infrastructure works created for the protection of rice, sugarcane crops and pastures for cattle raising. In this conflict, other direct drivers are also determined, such as the the Salvajina Dam and mining in the upper zone of Jamundí, which show a spatial trade-off in which the benefit of a few individuals generates the contamination and degradation of regulating ecosystems such as wetlands, madreviejas , and riparian forest on the UPRB, which is a fundamental ecosystem for the identity of the afro-descendant communities and other social and supply activities such as artisanal fishing. In the Río Claro River, the main driver of transformation is the LULC change related to the current demographic expansion in the department of Valle del Cauca.

The Upper Cauca River Basin (UCRB) has an altitude range from 4,700 metres above sea level (MASL) at the top of the Puracé volcano and 950 (MASL) in the alluvial valley of the Cauca, with an estimated length of 520 km and an area of 2,180,940 ha (DNP, 2009). The population of the UCRB amounts to 5.9 million people, of which 65% is concentrated in the Department of Valle del Cauca, followed by the Department of Cauca with 15.5%. The urban population in the basin is 75%, and the rural population is 25%. The ethnic population corresponds to 80% “mestizos” and whites, 10% indigenous and 10% Afro-descendant population (MADS, 2020; HUB Colombia Project, 2022; Galvis, 2017). Considering these broad socioeconomic and biophysical characteristics, our research focuses on four sub-basins as case studies that represent the heterogeneity of the UCRB in the departments of Cauca and Valle del Cauca, which are: Las Piedras, Río Claro, Guachal and Mediacanoa. One of the main demands in the UCRB is potable water for human consumption, together with agro-industrial activities, livestock, and fishing. Water concessions (permissions) for water supply systems are concentrated in the main population centres of the region, such as the municipalities of Popayán with 800 L/s from Las Piedras River, 3.624 L/s L/s in Guachal River, and 745 L/s in Río Claro River. In Río Claro River, water supply is concentrated in communities with high socio-economic status, deepening the socioeconomic gap. These water supply systems provide safe water mainly for urban users; however, the inhabitants of the supply sources located in rural areas of Las Piedras, Guachal, and Río Claro have limited access to drinking water, a situation that deepens the socioeconomic gap in the region and fuels the emergence of water conflicts.

The Upper Cauca River Basin

Most of the communities associated with this watershed are Afro-descendant, “mestizos”, and agro-fisher communities. LULC and economic activity are based on the primary sector with sorghum, corn, rice, cultivated pastures, and sugarcane. There is also mining and extraction of sand and stone from the river, but mainly built-up areas (31%) with industrial zones (4.6%), inland waters (34%), as well as production areas for miscellaneous crops (5.9%), and permanent crops (6.2%). Permanent crops (4,076 ha) Other crops (1,308 ha) Natural areas (74 ha) Forests (15,000 ha)

In the Río Claro River Basin, water quality is good. The score is not high, due to: (i) anthropogenic activities, which generate discharges because of extensive agricultural production (pastures and sugarcane); (ii) legal and illegal mining upstream, which increases sediments and turbidity; (iii) an accelerated demographic expansion that occurs in the nearest urban municipality, Jamundí.

Water quality and quantity