Rio - Challenges created by urban growth Flashcards
What is a favela?
A shanty town/slum area that is in or near to a city
Why are favelas illegal?
People have built homes on land they do not own
What is the biggest favela in Rio?
Rocinha
Where is Rocinha located?
It is found on the steep slopes just behind Ipanema and Copacabana beach
Why is having a house difficult in a favela?
-The houses are built from scrap materials
-Houses are illegally built
Why is the geography in favelas bad?
-They are built on steep slopes, which can have landslides in the rain
-The steepness of the slopes limit road access
Why is the infrastructure in favelas bad?
-12% of homes don’t have running water, 30% don’t have electricity, and 50% don’t have sewage.
-Waste cannot be disposed of in some places, so it builds up in the streets.
Why are the people in favelas dangerous?
-20/1000 people are murdered
-Drug gangs dominate the favelas
Why is healthcare bad in favelas?
-Infant mortality rates are high (50/1000)
-Very high population density means diseases spread fast
Why do people distrust the government in favelas?
-There is lots of police violence and corruption
Why is employment difficult in favelas?
-Most employment in the favelas is poorly paid and much is in the informal sector
What has been done to improve life in the favelas?
-Rehousing people into concrete housing
-Moving people to less crowded areas of the city
-Developing rural areas to slow rural to urban migration
-Make artwork to improve the areas
-Developing cultural activities for children, such as sports, to stop them from joining gangs
-Pacifying favelas to stop crime and get rid of gangs
-Raising taxes on the rich to pay for housing for the poor
-Donating money to charities who work in favelas
-Building more schools in the Favelas to educate the young
What social changes did ‘the favela barrio project’ bring?
-Daycares to allow parents to go to work
-Pacifying police unit (PPU) patrols to reduce crime
-Free return tickets on a cable car to Ipanema
-Training schemes to help people learn job skills
-Widening streets to allow road access (for emergency services)
-Services to help people affected by addiction and violence
-Adult education centres to improve adult literacy
-Residents can apply to legally own properties
-Provision of services like: water, electricity, and rubbish collection
What economic changes did ‘the favela barrio project’ bring?
-Access to credit
What were the problems with water?
- Many people without access to running water.
- Too much water being used for industry meant local people received less water.
- Paraibuna and Santa Branca reservoirs were declared empty in 2015.
What percentage of Rio’s population didn’t have access to running water?
12%
Why were people receiving less water?
Too much water was being used for industry
What percentage of water is lost and why?
37% of water is lost as a result of leaky pipes
What was an indicator of water running out?
- Paraibuna and Santa Branca reservoirs ran out in 2015.
What were solutions to the water challenges?
- Improving water supplies in the olympic park and favelas.
- New, canal-style, sewers were introduced to prevent cross contamination between clean and dirty water.
- Over 300km of pipes were laid.
- New treatment plants built between 1998 and 2014.
- By 2014, 95% of the population had mains water supply.
What does access to clean water do?
Improves the lives of the poor by reducing infant mortality and the spread of waterborne diseases.
What are the problems with energy in Rio?
- There is a shortage of electricity, resulting in frequent blackouts.
- The growing population as well as the world cup + Olympics made the electricity shortage worse.
- Many of the favela residents illegally use the mains electricity supply, which is unsafe.
What were the solutions to energy problems?
- 60km of power lines constructed.
- New nuclear generator constructed.
- Development of the Simplicio hydroelectric complex, which increased the electricity supply by 30%.
What happened to Brazil in 2015?
Recession
