A decade ago, South American governments introduced the Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America (IIRSA) -- a multinational initiative to connect and develop the continent. Since then, Brazil has spent billions of dollars on infrastructure in the region, but not everyone is happy about the direction of the development. Indigenous groups in the area say that rampant development -- which includes projects that will dam rivers and introduce roads to remote areas, potentially changing the Amazonian landscape forever -- will destroy their traditional way of life.
Above is one of the more controversial projects Brazil has embarked on, the Jirau Dam. Complaints about the dam have ranged from labor conditions to flooding of environmentally sensitive areas and the displacement of indigenous peoples. Currently in construction, the dam on the Maderia River is Brazil's second-largest infrastructure project. Here's a tour of some of the megaprojects that have stirred up passions on both sides of the debate.
Noah Friedman-Rudovsky
