Patos Lagoon

by Renato Herz, Univ of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil,
Affonso S. Mascarenhas, Jr., Univ of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: The Management of Coastal Lagoons and Enclosed Bays

Abstract:

Patos Lagoon is one of South America's most important lagoonal environments. There is a complex of basins, controlled by the coastal lagoons Mirim and Patos, whose salinity regime is influenced by the Sao Goncalo and Rio Grande channels. Geographically the principal unity of the coastal system is the Patos Lagoon. Studies about this lagoon can be traced to the 19th century; however, more detailed studies began to be published during the 1960's. The evolution of this transitional environmental is considered in this paper, where the main results that circumstantiate the physical structure of the coastal environment and its indirect influence upon the ecosystems formation is discussed.

Subject Headings: Lagoons | Coastal protection structures | Ecosystems | Topography | Salinity | Natural resources | Developing countries | South America | Rio Grande | Brazil

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