A contribution from the DPSIR methodology to the study of a small town in the Amazon: Ponta de Pedras, Pará, Brazil

Abstract

This article aimed to analyze DPSIR approach’s contribution in an Amazonian small town, according to the local people’s lives. As methodological procedure, we sought to understand the relation between urbanization aspects connected to globalization and the population health of said small town. For this research, data were obtained in field, which allowed an analysis of the health situation in two urban sectors. The DPSIR methodology - Driving force-Pressure-State-Impact-Response, developed by United Nations Environment (UNE) and adapted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), will serve as support for the understanding of impacts on the population’s health, analyzing issues as access to available infrastructure, including water supply. As a result, Ponta de Pedras town, located in Marajó Island (PA), Brazil - where the research was performed -, requires an immediate intervention from the public authorities to minimize impacts of population’s exposure to vulnerable conditions.