Water in São Paulo

No. 036 Hydrography Water in São Paulo 1/3

River basins

Twenty-two homes for the same rain

Map of São Paulo state divided into its 22 UGRHIs, numbered in white seals and coloured by population density in 2022, on a viridis ramp from yellow (under 43 people per km², in the south and west) to dark purple (over 190, in Alto Tietê, Piracicaba/Capivari/Jundiaí and Baixada Santista). A blue line with diamonds marks the Tietê-Paraná waterway and its eight locks. An arrowed callout points to Alto Tietê: 46.1% of the people on 2.4% of the land. In the panel, an index lists the 22 basins by number. — Fig. 036 São Paulo state (SP) EPSG:4674 Source: SEADE, IBGE, MapBiomas

To look after its water, São Paulo does not use the map of municipalities but the map of basins: 22 Water Resources Management Units, the UGRHIs. Coloured by the 2022 Census population, they show a state that is unequal under the same rain. The municipalities of Alto Tietê, around the capital, hold 20.5 million people, 46.1% of the state’s population, on 2.4% of its land: 3,456 people per km². In Pontal do Paranapanema there are 20.8. Along the Tietê and the Paraná runs the waterway too, with its eight locks drawn on the map. First plate of the collection “Water in São Paulo”.

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Layers

ugrhi polygon 22 UGRHIs: area, municipalities, 2022 population and density
municipios polygon 645 municipalities, with the assigned UGRHI, the share of territory in it and the 2022 population
hidrovia line Tietê-Paraná waterway
eclusas point 8 locks on the waterway
limite_estadual polygon State boundary

Metadata

Sources: SEADE — GeoSEADE: Water Resources Management Units (UGRHIs), as defined by the State Water Resources Council
IBGE — 2022 Population Census: aggregates by municipality (2022)
MapBiomas — infrastructure database: waterways and locks
IBGE — Municipal Mesh 2025 (2025)
Extent: São Paulo state (SP)
CRS / Projection: SIRGAS 2000 (EPSG:4674)
EPSG:4674
Software: Python · GeoPandas · GDAL · QGIS · Node.js · d3-geo
Method: Each municipality assigned to the UGRHI covering most of its territory; 2022 Census population summed by UGRHI and divided by basin area, in six quantile classes.
Version: v1.0.0
Licence: CC BY 4.0
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.23539331

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The map without a frame, with legend, scale, reference system and credit written on it: ready for papers, lectures and slides. In two versions: with the basemap (neighbours and sea) or only the mapped area, on white.

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Cerejo, L. N. (2026). Bacias hidrográficas: vinte e duas casas para a mesma chuva [River basins: Twenty-two homes for the same rain] (Version 1.0.0) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23539331

@dataset{cerejo2026_bacias_hidrograficas_sp,
  author    = {Cerejo, Lucas Nakamura},
  title     = {Bacias hidrográficas: Vinte e duas casas para a mesma chuva},
  year      = {2026},
  publisher = {Zenodo},
  version   = {1.0.0},
  doi       = {10.5281/zenodo.23539331},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23539331},
  language  = {portuguese},
  note      = {English title: River basins: Twenty-two homes for the same rain. Licence CC BY 4.0}
}

No. 037 Hydrography Water in São Paulo 2/3

Drainage network

Rivers that turn their backs on the sea

Map of the state of São Paulo with the HydroRIVERS river network drawn as threads that thicken with mean discharge. Rivers flowing inland, towards the River Plate basin, are dark blue and cover almost the whole state, in a fan of tributaries running north-west to the Paraná on the border; those flowing straight to the Atlantic, in clay red, fill the Paraíba do Sul valley, the coast and the Ribeira valley. The Tietê is highlighted, with its name written mid-course. Outside the state, the larger rivers appear in grey. Two callouts: the Tietê’s source, 12.5 km from the sea, and the largest mean discharge, 8,490 m³/s, on the Paraná. In the panel, the slope legend, a width scale by discharge, and bars with the kilometres of river by Strahler order. — Fig. 037 State of São Paulo (SP) EPSG:4674 Source: WWF / HydroSHEDS, IBGE

The Tietê rises 12.5 km from the sea and runs 982 km the other way, inland, to the Paraná. It is not alone: 85.7% of the area drained by São Paulo’s rivers flows inland and on down the Paraná to the River Plate, between Argentina and Uruguay. The Serra do Mar and the Mantiqueira divide the waters. Only the coastal strip, the Ribeira de Iguape and the Paraíba do Sul valley send their rain straight to the Atlantic, through 123 river mouths on the São Paulo coast. The map draws 61,009 km of rivers, each reach as wide as its mean discharge: from headwater streams to the Paraná on the state border, with 8,490 m³/s. Second plate of the collection “Water in São Paulo”.

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At a glance

Layers

rios line 16,999 river reaches in the state and on its border: length, upstream area, mean discharge, Strahler order and slope
tiete line The Tietê from its source to the Paraná, 982 km
limite_estadual polygon State boundary

Metadata

Sources: WWF / HydroSHEDS — HydroRIVERS v1.0, South America (Lehner and Grill, 2013)
IBGE — Municipal Mesh 2025 (2025)
Extent: State of São Paulo (SP)
CRS / Projection: SIRGAS 2000 (EPSG:4674)
EPSG:4674
Software: Python · GeoPandas · GDAL · QGIS · Node.js · d3-geo
Method: HydroRIVERS reaches clipped to São Paulo, with width by modelled mean discharge and slope by the outlet of the river system; the Tietê traced from mouth to source along the reach with the largest upstream area.
Version: v1.0.0
Licence: CC BY 4.0
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.23539351

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The map without a frame, with legend, scale, reference system and credit written on it: ready for papers, lectures and slides. In two versions: with the basemap (neighbours and sea) or only the mapped area, on white.

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How to cite

Cerejo, L. N. (2026). Rede de drenagem: os rios que dão as costas ao mar [Drainage network: Rivers that turn their backs on the sea] (Version 1.0.0) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23539351

@dataset{cerejo2026_drenagem_sp,
  author    = {Cerejo, Lucas Nakamura},
  title     = {Rede de drenagem: Os rios que dão as costas ao mar},
  year      = {2026},
  publisher = {Zenodo},
  version   = {1.0.0},
  doi       = {10.5281/zenodo.23539351},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23539351},
  language  = {portuguese},
  note      = {English title: Drainage network: Rivers that turn their backs on the sea. Licence CC BY 4.0}
}

No. 038 Biomes Water in São Paulo 3/3

Protected areas

Where the forest still keeps the spring

In the Litoral Norte, 73% of the basin lies in strictly protected areas, most of it in the Serra do Mar State Park. In the west of the state, three basins — Baixo Tietê, São José dos Dourados and Baixo Pardo/Grande — have none at all. Taken together, the 270 protected areas in the CNUC for São Paulo cover 15.1% of the territory, but only 4.0% under strict protection; nearly all the rest are Environmental Protection Areas, which allow settlement under rules. Over the 22 basins, the map shows where protected forest still keeps the springs: in the Serra do Mar and the Ribeira valley. Final plate of the collection “Water in São Paulo”.

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At a glance

Layers

unidades_conservacao polygon 270 protected areas: category, group, sphere, founding act and area in SP
ugrhi polygon 22 UGRHIs with the area and share under strict protection and in any protected area
limite_estadual polygon State boundary

Metadata

Sources: MMA — National Register of Protected Areas (CNUC), as published by GeoSEADE (2024)
SEADE — GeoSEADE: Water Resources Management Units (UGRHIs)
IBGE — Municipal Mesh 2025 (2025)
Extent: São Paulo state (SP)
CRS / Projection: SIRGAS 2000 (EPSG:4674)
EPSG:4674
Software: Python · GeoPandas · GDAL · QGIS · Node.js · d3-geo
Method: CNUC protected areas clipped to São Paulo’s territory; areas dissolved so overlaps are not counted twice, and crossed with the 22 UGRHIs.
Version: v1.0.0
Licence: CC BY 4.0
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.23539373

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The map without a frame, with legend, scale, reference system and credit written on it: ready for papers, lectures and slides. In two versions: with the basemap (neighbours and sea) or only the mapped area, on white.

With basemap (PNG) Without basemap (PNG) QR code (SVG)

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How to cite

Cerejo, L. N. (2026). Unidades de conservação: onde a floresta ainda guarda a nascente [Protected areas: Where the forest still keeps the spring] (Version 1.0.0) [Data set]. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23539373

@dataset{cerejo2026_unidades_de_conservacao_sp,
  author    = {Cerejo, Lucas Nakamura},
  title     = {Unidades de conservação: Onde a floresta ainda guarda a nascente},
  year      = {2026},
  publisher = {Zenodo},
  version   = {1.0.0},
  doi       = {10.5281/zenodo.23539373},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23539373},
  language  = {portuguese},
  note      = {English title: Protected areas: Where the forest still keeps the spring. Licence CC BY 4.0}
}

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