Uso e cobertura da terra nas áreas de falésias e dunas na vila de Pipa-RN: análise temporal de 1984 a 2024

Abstract

Land use and cover changes in coastal regions are often linked to the phenomenon of tourism. In this way, just like the inland areas of the country, the appropriation of the Brazilian coast took place in a disorderly manner, without adequate territorial planning, causing the appearance of social, environmental, and economic inconsistencies. An example of this conflicted situation is the Village of Pipa, in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, which faced accelerated tourist development, responsible for altering lifestyles, landscapes, and its territory. Therefore, with the presence of live cliffs all along its coast, Pipa has transformed into a region with a strong commercial appeal, although vulnerable to natural processes such as erosion, which is being aggravated by tourism expansion and real estate speculation. In this context, with the tragic accident that occurred in 2020, in which a family was fatally hit by the fall of blocks of a cliff on Centro beach, the importance of environmental planning and territorial management was revisited. Therefore, considering this context, the results indicated in this research demonstrate that the dynamics of land use and occupation in the region have been greatly transformed in the last four decades, going from an almost entirely natural area to an urbanized tourist hub. Based on these mappings, figures, graphs and tables were prepared, quantifying the classes identified for each year of interest. Thus, the study resulted in a product that can contribute to the development of public policies and management of coastal zones not only for the region of interest, but in locations with similar geoenvironmental and social characteristics, providing a structured methodological apparatus regarding coastal environmental planning.