Draft:Lower Northeastern Slope (Rio Grande do Sul)

The Lower Northeastern Slope is the name of a physiographic region in Rio Grande do Sul. Its main municipalities include Santa Cruz do Sul, Venâncio Aires, Montenegro, Encantado, Lajeado, Taquari, Santo Antonio, Sobradinho, and Candelária.

It covers an area of 15,847 km² and is bordered to the north by the Upper Northeastern Slope, to the south by the Central Depression, to the east by the Coastal Region, and to the west by the Middle Plateau. The region's altitude varies from 50 to 100 meters in the south to 500 to 600 meters in the north. The terrain is characterized by predominantly basaltic flows and siltstone layers.

The entire slope is covered with broadleaf forests. There are pine forests in the west and in the Aparados da Serra region. In the central part, where it borders the Upper Northeastern Slope, it transitions to a mix of broadleaf forests and pine forests.