In February 2023, the municipality of São Sebastião, on the north coast of São Paulo, experienced a tragedy as a result of heavy rains that reached 640mm in 24 hours and caused landslides and a lot of suffering. In addition to the rain, the complicating factor was that many families were in areas at risk and without resources for mitigating and adapting to the climate crisis, which are fundamental for saving lives. The sad outcome of the tragedy was the avoidable death of 64 people, dozens of injured people and many homeless families.
It's worth remembering that heavy rainfall, melting glaciers, heat islands and other events are all effects of the climate crisis, a consequence of an economy based on greenhouse gas emissions. The speed with which these events are happening in the country is increasing and a large part of our population is at risk, especially those living in more vulnerable territories
From the perspective of integrated land management, it is urgent to review the approach to urbanization projects and government plans to include crisis mitigation and adaptation measures. Thus, it is essential to take into account a holistic view of the urgent demands of each territory, with integration between risk mapping, maintenance, structural works and resettlement interventions - where necessary.
In this article, you'll learn about different approaches to the social and environmental problems affecting São Sebastião and many other municipalities, as well as some of the expert proposals for climate risk management, the mitigation of natural disasters in Brazil and the direction of sustainable urbanism.
What do people living in risk areas say?
Leandro da Silva lives in Vila Sahy, on the south coast of São Sebastião, one of the areas hardest hit by the rains. For him, this crime tragedy didn't start on February 19, it goes back much further and is the result of real estate speculation, a factor that drives people to occupy risky areas. In the region, caiçaras who work in fishing and many northeasterners who migrated to help build up the city have been left out and pushed into communities in risk areas.
Leandro said that he wasn't in the area on the day of the tragedy, but shared the experience of entering the community after the tragedy and seeing everything devastated. He reported that the community itself was responsible for rescuing 90% of the people who were pulled out of the mud alive, since the firefighters were coming from very far away. Seeing homes, dreams, neighbors, loved ones and family members washed away by the rain is a traumatizing experience that increases the risks to emotional health for a lifetime.
What do experts say about climate risk management and natural disaster mitigation?
Luciana Travassos, an urban planner with a Master's and PhD in Environmental Science from UFABC, discusses the environmental disaster in the city of São Sebastião and the social construction of risk and environmental justice. She highlights the importance of census data in understanding the multiple dimensions of the disaster and the process of space production that led to this tragedy. Her criticism is directed at the immobility of São Sebastião City Hall itself, which has not updated its master plan since 1999. In her presentation, she presented a series of data to explain how the vulnerability of the people who lived in the area led to the production of risk. In addition, she emphasized the importance of the city government's responses to these contexts of vulnerability and how they can produce new risks. According to Luciana, the disaster in São Sebastião is a classic case of environmental justice, because the distributive aspects of the burdens and bonuses of the process of producing space were not taken into account.
Some of the data and information presented were:
- Most of the homes in the region are for occasional use, which makes the infrastructure insufficient.
- The region has an economically active population that is insufficient to meet its needs.
- There is a high dependency rate and a significant presence of black people and women responsible for their families.
- The presence of a large proportion of children makes the population more vulnerable.
- More than 80% of the population work or have high body activity occupations, such as customer service and plumbing repair.
- The lack of public policies aimed at these vulnerable segments can lead to tragedy and crime in the region.
Complementing Luciana's view, Celso Santos Carvalho, an engineer with a master's and doctorate from USP's Polytechnic School, focuses on housing policy in Brazil, using the emblematic case of São Sebastião as an example. He explains that the Serra do Mar region, where São Sebastião is located, is naturally unstable and has always been occupied by small caiçara communities who lived in safe places. However, in the 1980s, the state built a stretch of the Rio-Santos highway in the region, which brought large public investments, but also started a process of disorderly occupation of the area, including the construction of houses in risk areas.
Celso also pointed out that the region had already been mapped as being at high risk and yet no preventative actions were implemented, nor was the heavy rain enough to call for a responsible decision to close the road. For him, this is yet another indicator that shows that Brazil needs a new civil protection and defence policy that prioritizes prevention and risk management.
What do popular struggles say about risk in urban occupations?
Fábio Chagas, from Coletivo Caiçara and the Federation of Community Associations of the State of São Paulo (FACESP), is an activist in popular struggles and a popular educator in urban occupations. The perspective he endorsed is one of denunciation. He emphasizes that the tragedy must be understood as a crime, while also bringing in an angle of popular struggles.
He also criticizes the logic of capital and real estate speculation that led to the expulsion of people from their land and the construction of luxury condominiums which, in turn, resulted in environmental fragility and the risk of tragedies. He also points out that, in addition to lives and material goods, the tragedy has destroyed a local culture and shaken the sense of belonging and community.
Challenges for sustainable urbanism in Brazil and the implementation of urban disaster prevention measures
São Sebastião still faces other challenges. Currently, the São Paulo Housing and Urban Development Company (CDHU) plans to build 704 homes in buildings up to five stories high. However, buildings over 9 meters high violate the municipality's Master Plan.
Residents believe that this change could trigger a process of verticalization that will permanently change the landscape in many parts of the city. After the tragedy, many of the families who were displaced were staying in hotels and hostels in the city or were given temporary housing of 18 m² made of wood panels. The new housing units are expected to be delivered by October.
Given all the points of view presented, it is clear that our country urgently needs to look at mitigating and adapting streets and housing to climate change. A climate-adapted popular housing policy is essential to save lives.
