 |
"The
Amazon basin is the
largest river basin found in the
world, covering an area of about 2.73 million sq. mi (7 million
sq. km). The second largest river
basin, which is the basin of the River
Zaire in the African Congo, is not even half as large. The water
resources of the area are spectacular; the volume of
water which flows from the basin into the sea is about 11% of
all the water drained from the continents of the earth. The
greatest flow occurs in July, and the least is in November.
While there are many rivers flowing through the basin,
the most important and well-known of these is the Amazon.
The width of the Amazon ranges
from about 1 mi (1.6 km) to as wide as 8-10 km (5-6 mi), and
although it is usually only about 20-40 ft (6-12 m) deep, there
are narrow channels where it can reach a depth of 300 ft (100
m)."
"South America." Gale Encyclopedia of Science, 3rd
ed. 6 vols. Gale, 2004. Student Resource Center. Thomson Gale.
15 September 2006 <http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/SRC>
Terms to know:
Indigenous people,
sustainable development,
urbanization,
multilateral
development banks, infrastructure |
