The Cautário River is a meandering river with clear water. The depth does not exceed in the dry season, and about in the short season of high water. The river rises in the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Indigenous Territory and receives tributaries from the Serra Uopianes and the Serra Pacaás Novos. It is fed by a region without major deforestation and silting of the river's margins. It has rapids, but always with a drop of less than. The most rugged stretch is between Redenção e Bom Destino. It is navigable, even in the middle section around Bom Destino, but only in the rainy season. During the wet season extensive areas of the forest are flooded. The climate is hot and humid, with temperatures of throughout the year. Annual rainfall varies from. Altitudes range from. The reserve is covered by open submontane rainforest, pioneer alluvial formations, dense alluvial rainforest and savanna. The forest is well-preserved near the waterways.
History
On 18 November 1991 a ban was placed on settlement, deforestation, professional fishing, logging, mining and other activities in the proposed Rio Cautário Sustainable Extraction State Forest. This ban did not apply to the small farmers, rubber tappers and fishing people living in the area. The Rio Cautário State Extractive Reserve was created by state decree 7.028 of 8 August 1995 with an area of about to support conservation and sustainable use of natural resources by the extractive population. It was placed under the Instituto de Terras e Colonização of Rondônia State. The decree creating the reserve noted the great pressure of predatory activity on forest areas occupied by traditional populations, which was causing irreversible loss of plant and wildlife resources, and exacerbating social conflicts. On 30 June 2004 an area of of federal land was transferred to the state of use in the extractive reserve. The deliberative council was created on 21 August 2009. As of 2016 the reserve was supported by the Amazon Region Protected Areas Program. In January 2016 SEDAM announced findings of illegal activity in the previous quarter in nine units that benefited from ARPA in the state. In the Rio Cautário State Extractive Reserve and the Serra dos Reis State Park they had seized a motorcycle, a tractor and six trucks loaded with of logs and of sawed timber, 930 wooden stakes and various camping and fishing items.
Economy
The area has been used for rubber extraction for more than 100 years, but only 6.5% of the land has been altered by human occupation. The residents earn income from production of flour and other agricultural products. There are five communities in the reserve. There are two schools, although only one was operating in 2011, and two health centres. The reserve is managed by the Associação de Seringueiros do Vale do Guaporé. Residents strongly support AGUAPÉ, one of the best organised of such associations in the state. There is a usage plan and a development plan created through technical cooperation between the United Nations Development Programme and Rondônia. There is also a plan for community forest management created due to decline in demand for rubber. The plan is to extract wood from per year in a managed area of Two serious obstacles to managing the reserve are its inaccessibility and the illiteracy of the leaders.
