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Cataratas S.A - Release 2008

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THE IGUAÇÚ NATIONAL PARK

Created by Decree nr. 1,035 on January 10, 1939, the Iguaçú National Park is located on the Western tip of the the state of Paraná. The unit, which comprises an area of 185 thousand hectares on the Brazilian side of the border, is linked to other 55 thousand hectares of the Iguazu National Park in Argentina. The border between the two countries and their national parks is the Iguaçú river whose source is near the Serra (mountain range) do Mar in Curitiba and runs through the whole state of Paraná with a length of 1,300 km.

The Iguaçú river estuary runs 18 kilometers after the Falls, where it flows into the Paraná river. This meeting of rivers gives birth to a triple border among Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay. The access to the Park is through Foz do Iguaçú by the BR-469 (federal highway), leading all the way to the Falls. The climate in the park is mild mesothermal and super humid, with an average temperature from 18 to 22 degrees Celsius and a minimum temperature of zero degrees Celsius and a maximum of around 40 degrees Celsius.
On November 17, 1986, during the Unesco general conference in Paris, the Iguaçú National Park was appointed as Natural Heritage of Humanity. It borders the municipalities of Foz do Iguaçú, Medianeira, Ramilândia, Matelândia, Santa Lúcia,, Céu Azul, São Miguel do Iguaçu, Santa Terezinha de Itaipu, Serranópolis do Iguaçu, Vera Cruz do Oeste, Santa Tereza do Oeste, Capitão Leônidas Marques, Lindoeste, Capanema.

The Iguaçú Park flora is made up basically of two groups: seasonal semidecidual forest and araucaria woods. The fauna is rare and representative. There are over 200 species of fowl that are distributed throughout the park area. The most significant species are toucans, hawks, hummingbirds, goldfinch, jaburu, mainly the purple-breasted parrot, as well as monkey eating hawks, macucos and diving ducks. The park is also inhabited by over 300 species of butterflies.
The mastofauna at the Iguaçú park is inhabited by the sucuarana, the spotted jaguar and by the puma - predators that require large areas - as well as by tapirs, deer, capybara (the largest rodent in the world), the paca and many others. Among reptiles, poisonous snakes such as the coral and jararaca snakes can be found. The rivers have a wide variety of species of fish.

The Iguaçú river is the largest river in Paraná and starts near the Serra (mountain range) do Mar, at the junction of the Ivai and Palmital rivers, at the border of the municipalities of Pinhais, São José dos Pinhais and Curitiba. It runs 1,320 km from East to West. After the Falls, the Iguaçú river follows its course to its estuary when it meets the Paraná river and creates the magic of the triple border that represents the harmonious relationship of three countries: Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.

THE IGUAÇÚ FALLS

The work Iguaçú means "big water" in the tupi-guarani etymology. The Falls were created around 150 million years ago and may reach a number of almost 300 individual falls depending on the volume of the river, although they may be scaled down to fewer than 20 during the flood season. The large falls are 19, three of them on the Brazilian side (Floriano, Deodoro and Benjamin Constant) and the remaining on the Argentinean side and facing Brazil - all of which enables those visitors on the Brazilian side to have the best view.

After a wide turn and rapids, the main riverbed, where the border between the two countries is located, falls into a deep erosion gorge that is called the Devil's Gorge. The Iguaçú river reaches a width of 1,200 meters above the Falls and narrows down to 65 meters in the canyon formed after the falls. The Falls are 800 long on the Brazilian side and 1,900 meters on the Argentinean side, which accounts for a circular shaped width of 2,700 meters.

The height of the falls ranges from 40 to 82 meters. The average water flow of the river is around 1,500 m3 per second, ranging from 500 m3/s during the draught period to 6,500 m3/s during the flood season.

CATARATAS DO IGUAÇU S/A - the company

Cataratas do Iguaçu S/A was incorporated on January 18, 1999, and its social objective was the implementation, operation, management, maintenance and economic use of the areas being granted by IBAMA, in accordance with the contracts dated 01/98 and 02/98, for a period of 15 years. The area allocated for public visitation, where the company concession areas are found and which includes the Falls, comprises around 0.3% of the Park's total area.

The company is headquartered in the city of Foz do Iguaçú and its social objectives characterize it as a Partnership for a Specific Purpose. The concession comprises the release, for economic purposes, of six areas in the Iguaçú National Park described as follows: the Visitors Center space, the Canoas Port space, the Santos Dumont space, the Naipi space, the Tarobá space, the Represa (Dam) Trail and the transportation system inside de park.

After the beginning of operations of the first phase of the projects, some figures have already drawn attention during the operation of Cataratas do Iguaçu S.A. According to a poll conducted among visitors through proper forms made available by the company, the satisfaction level as to the new structure and services is higher than 90%, from excellent to good. Although there are 150 employees currently working at the company, during peak seasons the total number of employees reaches 190. During Holy Week, approximately 9,500 visitors visit the Park on a single day and which poses no operational problems.