Río Zarumilla

Río Zarumilla La Moquillada, Quebrada Las Lajas
View upriver; on the left bank Ecuador, on the right bank Peru
Data
location	Ecuador , Peru
River system	Río Zarumilla
Headwaters	in the southwest of the province of El Oro 3 ° 44 ′ 3 ″  S , 79 ° 58 ′ 47 ″  W
Source height	approx.  600  m
muzzle	Gulf of Guayaquil Coordinates: 3 ° 26 ′ 23 "  S , 80 ° 13 ′ 18"  W 3 ° 26 ′ 23 "  S , 80 ° 13 ′ 18"  W
Mouth height	0  m
Height difference	approx. 600 m
Bottom slope	about 6 ‰
length	approx. 100 km
Catchment area	731.2 km²
Left tributaries	Quebrada Seca
Right tributaries	Quebrada Palmales
Medium-sized cities	Huaquillas , Zarumilla
Small towns	Aguas Verdes
Communities	La Victoria , Matapalo , Carcabón, Chacras

The Río Zarumilla , in the upper reaches also La Moquillada and Quebrada Las Lajas , is an approximately 100 km long tributary of the Pacific Ocean in the border region of Ecuador and Peru .

River course

The Río Zarumilla rises at an altitude of about 600  m in the southwest of the El Oro province in Ecuador. It initially flows 40 km in a west-southwest direction. He passes the village of La Victoria . The river then turns north and forms the state border between Ecuador and Peru. At river kilometer 37, the Quebrada Seca meets the river on the left. The village of Matapalo is located there on the Peruvian shore. At river kilometer 34 the Quebrada Palmales , the most important tributary of the Río Zarumilla, meets it from the right. On the right bank of the river are the villages of Carcabón and Chacras . There is a weir at river kilometer 19. Below this, a canal branches off to the right, which forms the state border. The actual river bed is now on Peruvian territory. At river kilometer 10, a newly built section of the Panamericana crosses the river. The "old" Panamericana crosses the river 4 kilometers downstream. On the left bank is the provincial capital Zarumilla , between the Río Zarumilla and the border canal is the small town of Aguas Verdes . Across the border in Ecuador is the city of Huaquillas . Five kilometers above the mouth, the river splits into two main estuary arms that branch out further. The estuary is in the extreme south of the Gulf of Guayaquil . There is the sanctuary Santuario Nacional los Manglares de Tumbes .

The catchment area covers 731.2 km². In the river valley, mainly bananas and rice, and to a lesser extent corn, lemons, soybeans and beans, are grown. In the lower reaches, the discharge of wastewater leads to a severe reduction in water quality.