Importance of Rivers

Serena Cuoghi
Title of Professor of Biology

The most obvious property of water in nature is that it is essential for life. The greater the presence of water, the more variety of species found in its path, and in this sense, the importance of rivers gives the following points in favor: 1) they allow a more extensive distribution of the vital liquid and therefore of the populations of species; 2) they increase the oxygenation of the water; 3) they contribute to the dispersal of the genetic material of the species towards other territories; 4) they are carriers of nutrients for soils; 5) they maintain the humidity of the environment for the formation of densely populated biomes such as forests, which in turn influence the flow of air currents; 6) they feed natural water reserves, such as lakes and lagoons; 7) contribute to the balance of the concentration of salts and minerals in the oceans; among many other contributions that make possible the dynamics of life on the planet.

The Flow of Life

Rivers are the natural course of water from its source. Either through springs through which groundwater finds its way to the surface, as collectors and runoff of rainwater, or as recipients of the transfer of water that exceeds the storage capacity of some natural or even human-created reservoir, it is definitely in a river that the water finds its way through the territories, carrying with it all the necessary resources for the development of life, for the vast majority of species existing.

At first glance the water is evident, however, in its disciplined flow it carries with it such a rich variety of elements that it is really because of them that rivers are so vitally successful.

Nutrients of all kinds, from the oxygen necessary for fish, algae, and microorganisms that inhabit freshwater, to nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium so necessary for terrestrial plants, rivers generously carry from one place to another all the ingredients for the abundance of species that are distributed along its course, distributing the nutrients that you drag from the high forested areas, with a high index of available organic matter, to the lowest areas of the valleys, guaranteeing the survival of savannahs and grasslands.

Biodiversity in Freshwater

An immense variety of species, both plant and animal, evolved from the oceans towards their adaptation in less dense and deep waters, finding in the fresh waters of the rivers a perfect habitat to establish themselves, in the same way, there is an enormous diversity of microorganisms that proliferate in these waters, some of them They can even be pathogenic for humans, so it is not recommended to drink any tap water, if it is not guaranteed that it is drinkable for consumption. human. In any case, people must become increasingly aware of the importance of rivers for our survival and the of all the wonderful biodiversity that they support, reducing their alterations and the contamination with which we have caused so much deteriorated.

Causes and Disasters

The importance of rivers for humans also goes beyond any biological need, in many cases, they have been taken as natural barriers that allow delimit territories, so it is very common to be able to find associated with some point in the course of a river, the demarcation of the territorial limit between two or more nations and between the states that make them up, while at a geographical level the rivers have even provided great support for the resolution of many conflicts territorial. The great civilizations of antiquity and the main cities of modernity have settled along rivers of considerable dimensions, both for the need for communication (navigable rivers have been the main paths of humanity for several millennia) as a source of drinking water and source of food. Just remember the cultures of Egypt (Nile River), Mesopotamia (Tigris and Euphrates) or the numerous European capitals located on the Danube.

But not everything has been perfect in the relationship between rivers and humans, either because of the unpredictability of nature's own behavior and the variation in each of its phenomena, or by the alterations themselves caused by the human desire to try to dominate it, which every day makes the encounter between both sides more frequent and catastrophic, especially when there is water in between, against whose force there is no way to be able to gain.

No matter how much engineering has been applied in the intentional human diversion of the riverbed, nature always ends up making it clear what its perfect route, therefore, it will always remain the most prudent, the development of any settlement or human activity, as removed as possible from the cause of a river, thus respecting the very dynamics of nature, safeguarding the biodiversity of the ecosystems that need the river so much and ceasing to expose the endangering human life itself, in addition to reducing the costs of material losses in buildings that in another space would have been safer since the principle.

The importance of rivers on the planet exceeds any possibility of misinterpretation. Many artists and scientists have compared them to the world's blood vessels, since they are are in charge of cardinal functions that make the integrity of the entire planet, like a true unit. A river It is a water course (generally with low salinity, hence the "fresh water" among us or "fresh water" [fresh water] among English speakers), which originates either at the starting point of the melting of the high mountains or as a confluence of other smaller watercourses (other rivers, small streams). In general, while the mountain rivers They have a fast and vigorous course, with a high mineral content, the plain rivers They are characterized by their greater flow and channel, with a slower and more leisurely course.

Therefore, it is necessary to emphasize that the importance of rivers makes them necessary protection objectives, since the contamination of the waters can lead to the destruction of entire ecosystems and even transform human settlements into unviable areas in the short and medium term.

References

Diaz, H. C., & Torres, J. g. (2000). Importance of rivers in the environmental environment. Journal of the Research Institute of the Faculty of Mines, Metallurgy and Geographical Sciences, 3(5), 57-63. UNMSM. Peru.

Montoya, J. V, Castillo, M. M., & Sanchez, L. (2011). The importance of periodic floods for the functioning and conservation of flood-prone ecosystems of large tropical rivers: studies in the Orinoco basin. Interscience, 36(12), 900-907. Venezuela.

Villa, C. (1996). Biology. 8th Edition. Mexico. McGraw-Hill.