Brazil is in the throes of its worst drought in decades.
With one of the most extensive river networks in the world,
Brazil, which is larger than the continental United States,
obtains more than 90 percent of its electricity from dams.
No water in its rivers means no power in the electricity
system.
Three-quarters of the 170 million Brazilians have been told
that they must immediately cut consumption by 20 percent or
face rolling blackouts and unscheduled power interruptions,
which would surely cripple the economy.
Few ordinary Brazilians had any inkling of the seriousness
of the crisis until the government announced the
conservation measures in mid-May, sparing only the Amazon
districts and the far south. Now it is clear that nearly
every aspect of life will be curtailed.
Under the government plan, households that fail to meet
conservation targets are to have their power supply cut for
up to six days. Small consumers who manage to save more than
20 percent, on the other hand, will receive cash bonuses,
while companies that cut consumption by more than that
amount will be allowed to sell their extra savings to
others.
Although Brazilians are used to government pronouncements
that are quickly reversed or undermined, this time they are
clearly taking the threats seriously: consumption fell by 10
percent even before the measures went into effect.
The rationing plan and the penalties that go with it have
set off a mad scramble to find ways to save electricity and
money. Just try, for example, to buy a fluorescent bulb,
flashlight, generator, gas-powered lantern, batteries or
even candles. Sales of electrical appliances, in contrast,
have plummeted.
The timing is good: with the Southern Hemisphere winter
approaching, use of air-conditioners and fans is minimal.
But most Brazilian households with power use electricity,
not gas, to heat shower and bath water.
"At home, we're doing that and everything else we can to cut
back on our electricity consumption," said Alfredo Rebello,
a salesman whose monthly bill averages about $40. "We're
watching television without lights on, doubling up the loads
of laundry and disconnecting the coffee maker and microwave
oven except when we have to use them."
Things are not much different at the office and residence of
President Fernando Henrique Cardoso in Brasilia.
"We're in the dark at the palace," the president said in a
newspaper interview late last month. "We've turned off the
outside illumination, and I've ordered all the interior
lighting turned down, the refrigerators disconnected and the
heat to the swimming pool turned off."
In Rio de Janeiro, outdoor street lighting has been cut by
one-third, and nearly every nighttime activity in major
cities is likely to be affected.
Gasoline stations across the country plan to shut from 10
p.m. to 6 a.m. Professional soccer games, concerts and other
entertainments have been banned, but the level of protest
has been less than expected because many people say they are
afraid to go out into the darkened streets.
"The level of crime is already terrifying, so imagine how it
is going to be with the streets darkened," said Maria
Aparecida Guimaries Gusmo, a 35-year- old homemaker. "I'm
sure that the criminals are going to take advantage of these
measures and that the ordinary citizen is going to remain at
home, sitting in the dark."
The police plan more nighttime patrols, but the situation of
other essential public services is less clear: barely half
of Brazil's hospitals have generators, for instance, and
private schools say they will have to struggle to cut
consumption.
The rationing plan was first announced May 18. But the
government's Energy Crisis Coordinating Committee continues
to tinker with the measures, giving the impression that it
is not in control of events and adding to the sense of
confusion, frustration and uncertainty.
