Qualidade ambiental da área urbana do município de Belém/PA: o desafio de mensurar.

Abstract

The accelerated and disorderly growth of cities has not been accompanied by the growth and improvement of urban infrastructure, which contribute decisively to the quality of life of its inhabitants. Studies on the urban environment reveal that the urbanization process generates impacts, both environmental and social, however these impacts can be avoided or at least minimized through an effective planning process. For this reason, the great challenge of urban planning bodies is to understand the functioning of the urban environment and provide the right conditions for communities to develop sustainably, seeking a balance between quality of life and preservation of the environment. In this sense, studies that deal with the reality of environmental quality in urban ecosystems are of fundamental importance to support planning policies and more efficient land management. This research aims to evaluate the environmental quality in the urban area of the municipality of Belém / PA, one of the municipalities of the northern region of the country that presents, in population terms, large extensions of subnormal clusters and highlights in the real estate scenario, with characteristics similar to many Brazilian cities. To evaluate the environmental quality, the methodological procedures developed by Borja (1998) and Kawakubo et. al., (2005) were used, using environmental and infrastructure indicators (water supply, sanitary sewage, urban cleaning, flooding, noise pollution and cover (SIPAM, CIOP, SESAN, IBGE, etc.) for the construction of a synthetic index of environmental quality.In order to observe stratifications between the districts, environmental quality charts and basic indexes were developed using Arcgis software. The perception of the residents was also investigated through structured questionnaires whose items correspond to the same indicators selected in the objective data. In order to observe possible contrast between the objective and subjective data an index of environmental perception was constructed using the same methodological precepts for the construction of the objective data and their respective spatialization. The data show that although the results point to a sufficient level of environmental quality, residents are dissatisfied with the infrastructure and quality of the environment.