A plan so that the easternmost point of the Americas does not disappear

EL PAÍS offers the América Futura section open for its daily and global informative contribution on sustainable development.

If you want to support our journalism, subscribe

A group of tourists take a photo next to a sign that reads “O coco mais oriental das Américas”.

It is the Cabo Branco Lighthouse, the sign that marks —at least for visitors— the easternmost place on the American continent, in João Pessoa, Paraíba, in the northeast of Brazil.

Very close, a rusty wire prevents them from approaching the edge of the cliff.

The exposed roots of a cashew tree -the cashew tree- and the broken asphalt warn that part of the ground has given way and that below the waves lick the vertical wall of rocks and yellow earth.

Marine erosion is a natural process that has been taking place constantly.

However, there are factors that aggravate it: mainly the effects of climate change and human action.

There are many coastal areas around the world affected by it and which, aggravated by the rise in sea level and high temperatures, may see their appearance completely changed in the coming decades.

The expectations are not positive: according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the forecasts are that the sea can rise up to one meter in height.

Aware of this problem, Professor Saulo Vital, from the Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB), leads a research project that studies the degradation that the cliffs of Cabo Branco have been suffering for several decades.

The objective is to quantify erosion visible to the naked eye and propose solutions to recover that area and prevent it from collapsing.

For now, the initiative is in the initial phase, although the ideal would be to be able to implement the measures obtained, for which they would need public support.

At the moment, they explain, that opportunity has not yet been opened.

One of the breakwaters built in front of a residential building, on Bessa beach, in João Pessoa.Rocío Periago

“To delay the process, you have to act on the causes that generate it.

At the local level, things can be done: the main thing is to control the occupation of the areas that are suffering from the erosive process.

Later, containment measures can be adopted ”, he explains, referring to the artificial systems implemented in the area that imitate the coral reefs that grow parallel to the coast.

At low tide they form natural pools and at high tide they act as breakwaters, protecting the beaches from the force of the sea.

Using aerial, drone and satellite imagery, they want to produce several scholarly articles this year.

"I couldn't tell you exactly when, but if everything continues as it is now, in a few decades the lighthouse may fall," warns Vital.

Despite the rocks that were filled in at its base in 2020, today the cliffs in that area of ​​the Brazilian coastline continue to crumble at an accelerated rate, aggravated by the infiltration of water.

Very close to the lighthouse there are other spaces, including the Estação Ciência, a building by the architect Oscar Niemeyer that may suffer the same fate.

The researcher from the UFPB Department of Geosciences believes that the impact of the project he is working on is good in the academic and social spheres, but regrets that "the public authorities have closed their ears" when it comes to studies like his. refers.

In this sense, Vital regrets what he considers a short-sighted vision of many politicians and the negligence of rulers when it comes to acting and proposing realistic solutions.

The road that leads to the lighthouse, for example, was closed to vehicles years ago and at the moment there are no plans to reopen it.

"The big problem is the disorderly use of the land, without proper planning," says Vital.

His hopes are to participate in the public hearings scheduled before a project is approved and thus try to implement effective measures that take environmental impacts into account.

The Cabo Branco Lighthouse, located on the cliffs of the same name, indicates the easternmost point of the American continent.Rocío Periago

Actually, the Cabo Branco Lighthouse does not mark the easternmost point of the American continent: it is located about 800 meters further south, at Punta do Seixas.

But years ago it was thought that a viewpoint on top of a cliff was more attractive to place a monument and attract tourists and that is why they decided to symbolically move the geographical landmark.

However, Seixas beach is also suffering the effects of the advance of the sea, so both places are in danger of disappearing in a few decades.

You don't have to go very far: also in Paraíba the Carapibus cliffs are on the brink of collapse and in the nearby Bahía da Traiçao, the seawater has practically made the beach disappear and has destroyed infrastructure and homes.

Projects with a comprehensive approach

Human intervention to stop the advance of the sea is something that has already happened in other parts of the Brazilian geography: from the artificial extension of Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro in 1970 to the recent (and controversial) widening works of the Balneario Camboriu beach, in the southern state of Santa Catarina.

This is also raised as a possible alternative in various areas of João Pessoa (including the cliffs of Cabo Branco) by the local government.

However, Vital insists that, without a prior study of possible environmental impacts, adequate land use planning and reforestation of the area, any proposal is bound to fail, apart from the fact that it would entail a very high financial cost.

His opinion is that other alternatives to current sun and beach tourism can be explored.

"Here the plans should change towards ecological tourism," he says.

“For example, on the cliffs, instead of occupying the space and building walls, you could reforest and rearrange the space.

And take advantage of tourism with the creation of geoparks [protected areas], which is very common in Europe.

There are many protection areas there with an environmental character and a tourist use”.

The professor believes that to prevent erosion from ending up destroying natural spaces, it is not enough to stop building or place barriers on the coast, but rather a global project that integrates a sustainable long-term vision is necessary, because erosion will not stop to exist.

The Pipa Ecological Sanctuary, in the nearby State of Rio Grande do Norte, is a positive example of recovering a cliff.

With a project to preserve the Atlantic Forest, the endemic vegetation of the area, in the sanctuary they have managed to recover an area degraded by the planting of crops and pasture for cattle.

This reserve promotes tourism focused on hiking trails, spaces for turtle and dolphin watching, and care and knowledge of the natural environment.

Although rockfalls also occur in this area,

A barbed wire fence marks the part of the Cabo Branco cliff that has collapsed.Rocío Periago

The transformation of the coasts of Brazil

The Brazilian coastline includes 17 states and has an approximate extension of 7,500 kilometers, slightly more than the distance between Madrid and Miami.

In 2018, the publication Panorama da Erosão Costeira no Brasil warned that more than 60% of these coasts were affected by sea erosion and sediment accumulation.

This has transformed the line of many beaches and has affected the way of life of thousands of people.

According to that publication, erosion had increased by 50% in the last 20 years.

This is one of the many environmental problems that the new Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Marina Silva, must face in a country where large cities such as Fortaleza, Salvador de Bahía and Rio de Janeiro are located on the coast.

In addition, the economy of the Latin American giant could also be affected due to the enormous tourist potential of Brazil, whose main attraction is its beaches.

In João Pessoa, the effects of erosion and the advance of the sea are visible on the Bessa beach.

At low tide, the umbrellas look for a gap between barriers and breakwaters made of rubble, rocks or wood, placed to minimize the effects of the sea on the houses.

Some were installed by the City Council itself years ago, others by individuals, who repair them periodically, but they are still patches that temporarily stop a more global problem.

The cliffs of Cabo Branco from the beach of Punta do Seixas, the westernmost point of the continent.Rocío Periago

The Oceana Atlántico hotel boasts of being the only one in the city “with direct access to the beach”.

Built on the beachfront shortly before the pandemic, it took advantage of a small elevation and an old structure to build its own wall: a breakwater with a viewpoint separated a few meters from the hotel's own pool.

With a barrier of trees and vegetation (and the prospect of continuing to plant), they explain that, despite allocating approximately a third of the budget to guarantee good protection for the dike, the forecast is that every 10 or 15 years it will have to be repaired.

“We've been here for about 12 years and of course you can see that the sea is advancing,” confirms William Mocotó, manager of the Camarão Grill restaurant, also on the beach.

Today it is high tide and the waves splash the tables and chairs in the first rows making it impossible to use them.

"If we didn't have this," he says, pointing to the local breakwater, "the water would reach the bottom."

Right next to it, a housing development announces the construction of several luxury residences: they include a swimming pool, gym, green areas, barbecue and a huge concrete breakwater that resembles Lego pieces.

Another barrier to prevent the easternmost point of the Americas from ceasing to be.