Queima Pé Spring: Revitalization Shows Results and Ensures Water Supply Regularity

Four years after the launch of a comprehensive environmental recovery project, the spring of the Queima Pé River in Tangará da Serra (Mato Grosso – Brazil) is now showing clear signs of hydrological recovery. This was confirmed by the latest flow measurement conducted this July by environmental consultant Délio Eloi Siebert, director of the Pantanal-Amazon Conservation Institute (IPAC).

It’s important to remember that the Queima Pé is the main water source supplying the urban population of Tangará da Serra. Last week, Siebert measured a daily water production of 743,040 liters at the spring — equivalent to 4.72% of the city’s daily urban water demand.

Image of the Queima Pé spring on July 12, 2025 (Saturday).

The numbers are promising, especially considering the significant flow reduction seen in previous years before 2022. As witnessed by the EB newsroom, the spring’s recovery is a direct result of the actions carried out in 2021 by IPAC, funded by the State Public Prosecutor’s Office and private companies, with support from City Hall, Samae, Sema-MT, CBH Sepotuba, Rotary Club, the Rural Union, and other civil society organizations.

Noticeable difference: Condition of Queima Pé in August 2021.

“The Queima Pé spring has been returned to the municipality in a vital condition. Water is flowing again with strength — a result of coordinated, technical, and environmentally responsible work, now proven in numbers,” highlighted Délio Siebert.

Results of the Revitalization

This July’s flow rate of 743.04 m³/day occurred even though the last rainfall — about 40 mm — happened on June 23. Flow tends to increase between December and March, often tripling by March, when it can exceed 2,000 m³/day.

Image of the Queima Pé spring on July 12.

To grasp the revitalization’s impact, consider the drought period of 2024: rainfall stopped in mid-April and only resumed in October — over six months without rain and with high temperatures recorded in the final months of the year.

On the other hand, from October through June, rainfall totaled well over 2,000 millimeters. The abundant precipitation during the last rainy season, therefore, contributed significantly to the current flow of the Queima Pé’s main spring.

Décio Siebert, from IPAC, led the revitalization efforts in September 2021.

Figures and Proportion

With an estimated urban population of 102,267 people (based on the 2022 Census and a floating population of 3,000), the daily water demand in Tangará da Serra’s urban area is around 15,749 m³/day, based on the national average consumption of 154 liters per person (ANA and SNIS data).

The current flow of the Queima Pé spring — 743.04 m³/day — represents just under 5% of this need, but it holds major strategic value. It marks the revival of a natural resource long stressed by poor land use, erosion, and silting.

Siebert points out that the 4.72% figure comes from just one spring, which he says is significant and worth celebrating. “If a single spring accounts for almost 5% of a city’s water needs, imagine if we revitalized the other 13 key springs in the Queima Pé basin, located upstream from the Water Treatment Plant (ETA),” he emphasized.

He also stressed the importance of the 2021 revitalization work, now being replicated in other springs such as the Cristalino stream, near the city’s ring road. “While it’s a modest percentage compared to the city’s full demand, it’s highly meaningful from an environmental standpoint. This spring was once considered technically dead — now it provides regular flow,” he added.

Restoration and Institutional Partnership

Work carried out in 2021 began showing results as early as 2022, with the recovery of the main spring’s flow.

The 2021 efforts included:

– Construction of terraces to control surface runoff around the spring;

– Installation of retention basins along nearby roads;

– Implementation of infiltration structures to enhance aquifer recharge;

– Planting of native species to restore riparian vegetation;

– Environmental education with local farmers and residents;

– Technical monitoring of flow and water quality.

The recovery of the spring is a direct result of actions carried out in 2021 by IPAC, in partnership with the State Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Municipality of Tangará da Serra, Samae, Sema-MT, Rotary Club, Rural Union, and other civil society organizations.

The project was coordinated by IPAC in partnership with Tangará da Serra’s City Hall, funded by the State Public Prosecutor’s Office and private companies, with support from Samae, SEMA-MT, CBH Sepotuba, Rotary Club, the Rural Union, and other civil society organizations.

“This is an example of how collaboration between civil society, public authorities, and private entities can generate real results in defense of sustainability. In times of climate uncertainty and growing urban pressure, restoring and protecting springs is more than an environmental action — it’s a strategic move for water security and future planning,” concluded Siebert.