Curuá River (Iriri River) Curuá River (Iriri River) The Curuá River is a tributary of the Iriri River in Pará state in north-central Brazil. It is a tributary of the Iriri River. The river flows through the Tapajós-Xingu moist forests ecoregion. The river rises in the Nascentes da Serra do Cachimbo Biological Reserve, a strictly protected conservation unit established in 2005. It is one of the headwaters of the Xingu River. The upper part and the lower part of the Curuá River are divided by two waterfalls, only apart. The first waterfall is tall and the second is tall. As a consequence, the fauna
Xingu River extracting from the river most of what they need for food and water. The Brazilian government is building the Belo Monte Dam, which will be the world's third-largest hydroelectric dam, on the Lower Xingu. Construction of this dam is under legal challenge by environment and indigenous groups, who assert the dam would have negative environmental and social impacts along with reducing the flow by up to 80% along a stretch known as the Volta Grande ("Big Bend"). The river flow in this stretch is highly complex and includes major sections of rapids. More than 450 fish species have been documented