A view of the village of Cachoeira Teotonio, at the Teotonio rapids in the Madeira River near Porto Velho in Brazil's western Amazonian state of Rondonia. The rapids will disappear when the 7.7 billion dollar Santo Antonio dam goes into operation in 2011. Proponents say that Brazil needs more energy to grow and that the energy output per square kilometer of flooded area is one of the best ever. Detractors complain that fish stocks and indigenous populations will suffer.The dam will go online in December 2011 and make the Madeira River navegable for the first time - giving Bolivia access to the Atlantic ocean. (Australfoto/Douglas Engle)

A view of the village of Cachoeira Teotonio, at the Teotonio rapids in the Madeira River near Porto Velho in Brazil's western Amazonian state of Rondonia. The rapids will disappear when the 7.7 billion dollar Santo Antonio dam goes into operation in 2011. Proponents say that Brazil needs more energy to grow and that the energy output per square kilometer of flooded area is one of the best ever. Detractors complain that fish stocks and indigenous populations will suffer.The dam will go online in December 2011 and make the Madeira River navegable for the first time - giving Bolivia access to the Atlantic ocean. (Australfoto/Douglas Engle)