Battling floods, difficult soils and the environmentally sensitive nature of the Amazon rainforest, crews are building a 3,600-meter-long, $400-million bridge with a 400-m-long cable-stayed central section over the Negro River using a 400-barge working platform. The project, marked by a death and environmental controversy, is intended to boost economic development in the Amazon. Brazil’s Manaus-Iranduba Bridge, scheduled for completion by year’s end, will straddle the river close to where the waterway merges with the Amazon River. The span will create a land link between the city of Manaus and the town of Iranduba as well as 30 other, smaller municipalities.

Brazil is finalizing construction at its Foz do Chapec� hydroelectric plant. The last phase, a rockfill dam, was completed last April. The project used asphalt instead of clay as the main component of the sealing nucleus—a first in Brazil. The choice of this technique resulted from a number of advantages the contractors and owners of the project researched in Europe. Images Courtesy Of Volta Grande Consortium Contractor used an asphalt nucleus, instead of clay, for first time ever in Brazil. Images Courtesy Of Volta Grande Consortium Dam on Uruguay River will provide alternative route between the states of Santa Catarina

When built, Brazil’s first high-speed railroad will speed commuters across the 530 kilometers between Rio de Janeiro and S�o Paulo in just one hour and 30 minutes. But the bidding process has been slowed due to a dispute over procurement rules between the government’s Agency of Land Transportation (ANTT) and the national Audit Court of Brazil (TCU), testing the patience of potential bidders. + Image Map: Brazilian Government Planned high-speed rail route might not be done in time for next World Cup. Aware of the increasing disillusionment among bidders for the line’s 40-year design-build-maintain-operate contact, the government and court appear

In April, floods and mudslides killed 249 people in Rio de Janeiro and the outlying metropolitan area, according to fire department officials. Even in a country accustomed to heavy rainfall, flash floods and mudslides, the loss of life was unprecendented, according to Brazilian reports. Photo: O Empreiteiro Slides claimed lives and property in areas where officials ignored illegal construction for years. Niterói city had the highest toll: 164 dead, many of whom were killede in slides. Forty-eight bodies have been recovered. In Niterói's Morro do Bumba district, houses were built illegally on top of a garbage dump that was supposed

Rio de Janeiro is pushing for high-speed-rail service in time for the 2014 Olympic Games. The Brazilian government plans to issue a concessionaire contract in May for a 510.7-kilometer-long high-speed-rail system to link the cities of Campinas, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Construction costs are estimated at $19.3 billion, and the term of the concession is 40 years. + Image Image: Brazilian Government Related Links: China-Hong Kong Rail Line Costs Deepen London�s Massive Rail Project Gains Favor The Trem de Alta Velocidade (TAV) line will include nine stations, 90.9 km of tunnels and 107.8 km of bridges. Public consultations