There is a correlation between coping with Covid-19 and environmental disasters in Brazil, and that is not good. A study carried out by a researcher from the National Center for Monitoring and Alerts for Natural Disasters (Cemaden) showed that, in addition to the discontinuity of resources, there is still a basic problem regarding the need for policies for urban development that reduce the spatial distribution of vulnerability. The data were presented in the journal Sustainable Cities and Society.
In a first step, the research compared the municipalities in the South and Southeast regions most affected by problems such as droughts, floods and landslides in the last ten years and those that suffered the greatest impact of Covid-19.
“The 45 municipalities most affected by natural disasters are the same ones that suffered the most with high numbers of cases and deaths during the pandemic. it would be interesting to tackle the infrastructure problems in these regions”, explains Andrea Young, author of the study and a researcher at Cemaden. The work was supported by Fapesp.
Among the municipalities at the top of the ranking of both natural disasters and impacts caused by the pandemic are: São Paulo (with 38,770 deaths from Covid-19 in 2020) and Rio de Janeiro (34,102 deaths), followed by Belo Horizonte (6,636 deaths). “Although some municipalities present reduced numbers of disasters in relation to previous years, thanks to investments in civil defense, the fact that Campinas [SP] registered more than 4,000 deaths from Covid-19 and that in Santo André [SP], St Bernard [SP] and São Gonçalo [RJ] more than 3,000 deaths have occurred. saints [SP] and Joinville [SC] had more than 2,000 deaths each”, he says.
Discontinuity of resources and programs
The study also identified the existence of a correlation between the transfer of funds for fighting disasters and for the pandemic. In this case, as there was not enough historical data in the 45 municipalities, the researcher focused the analysis on the city of São Paulo. The case study in the capital of São Paulo also showed convergence between the neighborhoods most affected by the pandemic and those with the highest risk of disaster.
“At a first moment of the pandemic, the federal government offered money to help the issue of families and, to a lesser extent, to people who have businesses. This occurred before all the confusion for the purchase of vaccines in 2020. However, in 2021, the healthcare budget dropped precipitously,” says Young.
According to data from the National Treasury, the federal budget for emergency spending on Covid-19 was US$ 115 billion in 2020. The following year it was reduced to US$ 26 billion.
The researcher points out that the discontinuity of resources observed in the pandemic has also been the pattern in dealing with climate change over the last ten years. “When an environmental disaster occurs, invariably and quickly, resources are transferred to the emergency room. However, after the immediate problem is over, this resource is cut and the action plan is discontinued. the next rain, the next drought or, in the case of Covid-19, the next wave or epidemic”, he says.
On the part of the municipality, the researcher observes that, for the environmental issue, there is a greater concern in rebuilding the affected areas than in increasing the resilience of these regions. “Most municipalities invest in concrete, following the logic of more asphalt, dikes and reservoirs, instead of replanting and sanitation, for example. With that, the reconstruction of these areas ends up with gray structures, not focused on the ecological issue. So of course these areas will be affected again,” he says.
For the researcher, the situation reveals, therefore, that the money for these actions is being misused. “It’s money wasted because they are gray infrastructure works. They are more expensive than a work that aims to restore a forest or a mangrove.”
Something similar happened during the pandemic. “In the case of Covid-19, in 2020, the money for the purchase of vaccines was the smallest resource used, which shows a lack of haste or interest in vaccinating the population as soon as possible. US$ 10 billion for vaccines and only US$ 2.5 billion of the total budget was paid, while the total emergency budget for the municipality was approximately US$ 112.5 billion. no matter the type of emergency”, he explains.
Same weaknesses and opportunities
By comparing the fight against Covid-19 and environmental disasters, the study identified the same weaknesses and potential. “In the city of São Paulo, each neighborhood reacted differently to Covid-19. Some places in the periphery gave quick responses, as they had formed self-help connection networks, as observed in Paraisópolis. Other isolated neighborhoods in the south of the municipality were very hampered by the low access to transport and the precarious connection network between the residents”, comments the researcher.
Young emphasizes that resilience is not just about infrastructure, but also about the way neighborhoods establish connection networks and how they communicate. For her, the analysis makes it evident that government responses to both the pandemic and climate change must be linked to technology, urban intelligence and nature-based solutions.
“It’s not that little is spent. Often, it’s not spent in the place that needs it most. In some neighborhoods there were more cases of Covid-19, because sanitation was bad. This also goes for natural disasters. So wouldn’t it be better to focus this problem from now on, executing the appropriate measures and, therefore, saving resources? After all, knowing where the problem is and prioritizing it is a way to save”, he says.
Young believes that there is a lack of monitoring on the actions that made the neighborhoods more resilient and also on the continuity of the allocation of resources. “At this moment, we need to be very attentive with the SUS [Sistema Único de Saúde], because if the federal government really starts to cut these budgets –which should not be altered, as they are mandatory– there will be once again the discontinuity of resources and plans. It will be in deficit.”
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