Risco de Inundação na Cidade de Belém (PA): A Percepção Técnica e Social do Risco

Abstract

Increasingly, a diversity of natural events such as floods has been more present in cities, causing numerous disasters, and besides that, the world's population is living in increasingly vulnerable urban centers. Belém (PA) is an example of a city that has flooding records due to the frequent climatic events (high tides and increased rainfall), added to the fact that 54% of its population live in subnormal agglomerations (slums). Thus, this research aims to identify the flood risk in Belém. The method has a premise on the combination of technical parameters and social judgments in identifying the risk. On the technical aspect, a mathematical model is used to constitute the risk, exposure, and vulnerability indexes based on social, economic, and environmental indicators, having as results cartographic maps developed using Geographic Information System (GIS). On the social view, a questionnaire is applied to identify common thinking based on the population's experience living with floods, resulting in percentage data on the frequency of floods and the losses experienced. The analyses identified four distinct risk areas divided by the districts of Belém; Sacramenta and Guamá; Entroncamento, Benguí and Icoaraci; Outeiro and Mosqueiro. The results show a spatial heterogeneity with a strong influence on the historical urbanization process of the city of Belém.