DOCE RIVER

Portuguese Rio Doce, river, eastern Brazil, formed by the junction of the Carmo and Piranga rivers in southeastern Minas Gerais state. Flowing northeastward to Governador Valadares, southeastward to Colatina, and thence eastward across the coastal plain of Esprito Santo state, it empties into the Atlantic Ocean near Regncia after a course of approximately 360 miles (580 km). It is the only water-level route by land to Brazil's interior from the eastern shore. The swamps and lagoons of the lower Doce have given rise to large sanitation works. Its upper course is commercially important because the mineral riches of Minas Gerais are funneled out via the railroad paralleling the river.