The fate of the Atafuna in Brazil is settled: an average of six meters per year “bites” from a resort on the Atlantic Ocean and, so far, has flooded more than 500 homes.
The beautiful Atafuna Beach, north of Rio de Janeiro, once attracted tourists, but is now a very depressing sight. On the beach, dilapidated houses touch each other, and in the sand, vultures win their prey.
The Atlantic has destroyed more than 500 homes so far, averaging six meters per year. This makes it one of the four percent of the world’s coastline that loses more than five meters annually.
Click on the image below to see our gallery of photos of the crumbling resort town!
The reasons are complex. One is global warming, which is contributing to the devastation through rising waters, extreme weather and ocean currents. The other is that the drainage of the Paraíba do Sul River into the surroundings of the city has been greatly reduced due to mining and agriculture in the river’s upper reaches, reducing sand to compensate for natural erosion. Finally, coastal construction has also eroded the resilience of the soil.
The process appears to be unstoppable. Although local authorities have considered plans to save the 6,000-strong settlement, such as building a dam or moving sand downstream, so far they have only existed on paper. writes on France24.
