PIURA

capital of Piura province and department, northwestern Peru, on the Ro Piura in the warm coastal desert. San Miguel de Piura was the first city founded (1532) in Peru by the conquistador Francisco Pizarro. The site chosen proved unhealthful, and several locations were occupied before settlement of the present site in 1588. Piura retains a colonial flavour, especially in the church of San Francisco. It is the commercial centre of northwestern Peru, which produces cotton, rice, and sugarcane. In and around Piura are cotton gins and cottonseed-oil mills, in addition to various small manufacturing plants. The city is accessible by the Pan-American Highway, by air, and by sea through the coastal town of Paita, 40 mi (65 km) west. Pop. (1981) city, 186,354; province, 413,688. department (formed 1861) of northern Peru, consisting of coastal desert, particularly in the west and south, and low, forested Andes in the east. Its area of 14,055 sq mi (36,403 sq km) is drained by the Ro Chira, in the north, and the Ro Piura, in the south. The irrigated valleys of these two rivers are used chiefly for the production of cotton. Upstream on the Ro Piura, sugarcane, rice, tobacco, and corn (maize) are grown. Cattle are grazed in the mountains and fattened on lowland irrigated pastures. Piura is also important for the production of petroleum. The BreaParinas fields, Peru's major oil-producing region, form a belt about 80 mi (130 km) long on either side of the community of Talara, site of an oil refinery in northwest Piura. The Pan-American Highway traverses the desert, passing through the departmental capital, Piura (q.v.). Other roads connect Piura city and the oil fields with seaports and penetrate the mountains. Piura city and Talara are also accessible by air. Pop. (1981) 1,125,865.