Os investimentos públicos em áreas verdes e a produção do espaço urbano em Campos dos Goytacazes

Abstract

The presence of green areas, such as parks, squares and gardens in urban space, is a factor of contribution for the valorization of the soil in some Brazilian cities. From the discourses of environmental quality and sustainability, the ―nature‖ is highlighted and its attributes are put as irrefutable indicators for improving the quality of life. However, as public investments in green areas also contribute to real estate speculation, they tend to favor processes of socio-spatial segregation. The city of Campos dos Goytacazes/RJ has been undergoing significant urban transformations in the last decades that were intensified by the arrival of the Logistics and Industrial Complex of Porto do Acu (CLIPA) and the dynamization of the oil economy. The objective of this paper is to analyze the public investments in green areas in the city of Campos dos Goytacazes/RJ, as well as to identify the presence of these spaces in the urban network in the district of the city. For the methodological structuring of the research, in addition to the specialized literature on the theme and to the selected area, we conducted documentary research in the city's Official Gazette and semi-structured interviews with municipal managers and the public who frequent such green areas, clarifying the decision-making process for the destination public resources to these areas and assessing them qualitatively. Among the results, we can see the scarcity of green areas in Campos, and most of these areas are located in the neighborhoods with higher income and soil value, which favors, in this sense, the population of high socioeconomic status. We also noticed that the public authorities have not been prioritizing the maintenance of green areas, as many are in a state of abandonment and in the process of deterioration, thus compromising their full use by the visitors. Real estate agents have been appropriating the ―nature‖ discourse to sell their properties both in neighborhoods with more environmental amenities and in gated communities, which reinforces the idea that nature is restricted only to people who have a certain purchasing power. In this sense, we hope that this work will collaborate with the broadening of the debate on the creation of green areas in the municipality, contributing to the implementation of public policies and reducing segregationist practices.