The urban hierarchy at the delta of the Amazon River and the importance of small cities

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to present an evaluation of the urban hierarchy of a sub-region of the Brazilian Amazon Region, the Delta of the Amazon River. We analyzed the Delta cities regarding their ability to provide access to basic services (infrastructure) and employment to their residents, or even the residents of adjacent towns. The results were produced using data from: census, the Annual List of Social Information (RAIS), the number of industrial establishments (Federation of Industries of the State of Pará - FIEPA), the year the cities were founded, distance from the cities to the state capitals, and the number of bank branches. A general index was created, and it allowed defining to what degree the cities were connected, and proposing an urban hierarchy at the Delta Region. Regardless of different historical processes, age, size and importance in the Regional Urban Network, the cities of the Delta can be compared in terms of infrastructure available to their population. At the same time, small cities are experiencing significant population growth, and expansion of urban areas without investment proportional to their needs.

Cultura urbana desde el habitar en la zona costanera del Departamento de Córdoba-Colombia

“…Estos lugares bien pueden servir de ejemplo para la diversidad urbana vista desde el habitar, esto es, los diversos modos en que se vive e intenta habitar lo urbano que, en el caso costero del Departamento de Córdoba muestra procesos de hibridación entre el entorno natural y la producción social del territorio en estos ecosistemas donde se revelan formas de urbanización que requieren ser gestionadas a partir de las necesidades que comunican quienes viven en estos lugares, relacionadas según Costa et al (2019) con el acceso a los servicios urbanos y la incapacidad para generar recursos y reinversión local que permita mejorar la calidad de vida de la población que no es visible para los responsables políticos.…”

Impactos ambientais oriundos do crescimento urbano/demográfico: um estudo no bairro da Pedreira, Belém/PA

“…A urbanização atrelada à necessidade de dar suporte e instalar infraestrutura aos profissionais qualificados e trabalhadores (permanentes e temporários) relacionados aos projetos de grande escala implantados na região dá origem a um conjunto de cidades planejadas na região (COSTA et al, 2019 2015).…”

“…Na Amazônia, o surgimento e crescimento populacional nas cidades, inicialmente, decorreu de relações mercantis como, a exploração das drogas do sertão e a extração de látex, atraindo milhares de habitantes da zona rural que procuravam melhorias das suas condições de vida nos centros urbanos (COSTA et al, 2019). Para autores, como Trindade Júnior (2015), a exploração econômica e a urbanização regional, foram intensificadas e aceleradas a partir dos anos 1960, impulsionadas pela abertura de rodovias de integração e pelos incentivos fiscais e creditícios à implantação de empreendimentos envolvidos com a extração e o beneficiamento de recursos naturais.…”

Perilous Future for River Deltas

“…While the seaward limit of a delta is easy to define, its landward extent, and thus its land area, is subject to interpretation; for example, all low-lying land seaward of a break in topographic gradation versus land lying at less than a specified elevation versus land area seaward of the deltaic channel. The area of the Amazon River Delta, for instance, can be considered to be as large as 100,000 km 2 (Ericson et al, 2006) to 300,000 km 2 (da Costa et al, 2019), or as small as 84,000 km 2 (Edmonds et al, 2020), of which only 1970 km 2 lie at elevations lower than 2 m (Syvitski et al, 2009). Reported areas and populations also depend on how the delta is defined-that is, by geographic, economic, or political criteria.…”