80-METER WATERFALL RECEIVES PERMANENT PROTECTION

Mato Grosso do Sul has gained another legally protected area. It is the Água Branca Private Natural Heritage Reserve (RPPN), located in Pedro Gomes, 310 km from the state capital, Campo Grande.

The protected area covers 29.26 hectares and includes the waterfall that gives the reserve its name, which features a drop of over 80 meters. Located about 10 km from the source of the Cipó stream, it is part of the Piquiri-Correntes sub-basin and the Emas-Taquari Biodiversity Corridor in the Serra de Maracaju—one of the priority conservation areas in the Upper Paraguay River Basin.

The creation of the RPPN was formalized by ICMBio Ordinance No. 2081, signed by Mauro Pires, president of the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio).

This means that even if the property changes ownership, the area will remain preserved.

The establishment of the reserve puts an end to a longstanding threat to the region: the construction of a hydroelectric plant that would have destroyed 80% of the waterfall. The idea for the dam originated in the year 2000.

According to experts from the NGO Ecology and Action (Ecoa), the construction of the dam would have been devastating, affecting the region’s scenic beauty, microclimate, tourism potential, and biodiversity—especially migratory birds that use the area as a refuge.

"The RPPN's location is very strategic because it lies on the edge of a large plateau, where there is already extensive degradation from monoculture and pasture. The waterfall is the end point of a water system that starts on this plateau and flows down to the Pantanal region," said Laércio Machado, an Ecoa consultant and expert in the creation of RPPNs in Brazil.

Images of the waterfall were provided by Ecoa. The NGO also compiled a timeline of the mobilization against the hydroelectric project:

• 1986 The property owner begins purchasing plots in the region.
• 1991 The property expands to include the Água Branca waterfall area.
• 2000s: A hydroelectric project threatens to reduce the waterfall’s water flow by 80%. Nelson refuses financial offers and initiates a legal battle.
• 2019–2024: The mobilization gains momentum with media coverage, campaigns (such as "The Brazil I Want"), and support from the State Public Prosecutor’s Office and organizations like Ecoa.
• May 2024: The hydroelectric dam project has its license suspended by both Imasul and federal authorities.
• June 2025: The RPPN creation ordinance is signed by ICMBio.

The NGO was a key ally in the fight against the hydroelectric plant and supported the property owner, Nelson Mira Martins, who had always wanted to build a lodge and promote tourism in the region.

"Since the beginning, we have been committed to the creation of the Private Natural Heritage Reserve (RPPN), aiming to permanently protect the waterfall from the construction of a Small Hydroelectric Plant (PCH), which had even already received an approved license from Aneel and Imasul, later suspended by the Public Prosecutor’s Office. So we were very happy and excited—along with other supporters and the community in general—with the news of the publication of the ordinance that officially created the Água Branca RPPN", he said.

However, he lacked the legal security to invest in a project that could be flooded at any moment. Through Ecoa's support, the RPPN creation process took only six months.

With vegetation reminiscent of the inland Atlantic Forest, sandstone soils, and the characteristic landscape of the Serra de Maracaju, the Água Branca RPPN has high ecological and scenic value.

The area also contains unexplored caves, cliffs suitable for rappelling, and ecological trails.

With the RPPN now established, Nelson's next step will be the development of the management plan, a document that defines the permitted uses and conservation guidelines for the area.

"The legal security ensured by the creation of the RPPN is extremely important. In the past, we even had investors interested in supporting us in building a lodge near the waterfall. However, due to the possibility of a hydroelectric plant being installed at its base—which would compromise 80% of the waterfall’s flow—there was no longer any interest in such initiatives, not even in basic infrastructure for tourism (such as visitor centers, campsites, restrooms). Now, with the RPPN established, we have the legal certainty to revisit the idea of a lodge and to promote tourism in the region, as the creation of the reserve officially and permanently protects the waterfall."

The creation of the Água Branca RPPN is part of the *Defense of the Pantanal and its Waters* project, carried out by Ecoa with support from the Pew Charitable Trusts.