CANOAS

city, eastern Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil. Situated 9 mi (14 km) north of Porto Alegre, the state capital, in the grassy lowlands south of the Serra Geral, Canoas enjoys a subtropical climate (60 to 78 F [16 to 26 C]) with abundant rainfall. The city was created by decree from several municipalities of Porto Alegre region in 1839, and although the majority of its labour force is employed in Porto Alegre, Canoas has become an important industrial centre in its own right, manufacturing glass, chemicals, and pharmaceutical products. It has several meat-packing plants and a petroleum refinery connected by pipeline to a large petrochemical complex completed in the early 1980s in nearby Trifuno. Canoas is also the location of Brazil's fifth zone Air Force base; an all-weather highway links Canoas and Porto Alegre. Pop. (1980 prelim.) 214,115.