Rivaling the Scenery
Better quality of life for local residents and a boost for tourism are the expected benefits of the installation of a new sewer system in the lovely town of Rio das Ostras on the north coast of Rio de Janeiro State Amerindians, missionaries, mule trains and oil
written by ◦ Marcus Neves photos by ◦ Américo Vermelho

Encompassing nearly two dozen beaches on its 20-kilometer coastline, Rio das Ostras is one of the finest jewels on the Costa do Sol – the littoral zone of northern Rio de Janeiro State that lies between Saquarema and Macaé. Therefore, the town’s normal population of 46,000 nearly doubles during the year-end holidays. This sudden population boom is a boon to the activities of local merchants, creating jobs in the retail and service sectors. On the other hand, it also puts a huge strain on the municipality’s urban infrastructure that pushes it to its limits. This is especially true for basic sanitation services, because the sewer system is almost non-existent. For lack of any other means of disposal, raw sewage and refuse are discharged into septic tanks and then collected by special vehicles and conveyed to a treatment plant in the neighboring municipality of Macaé.

With a strongly service-based economy, more precisely driven by the tourist industry, Rio das Ostras has gained a substantial financial boost from the “Petroleum Law” (Law no. 9.478 of August 6, 1997). Among other things, it stipulates that the municipality must receive royalties for the oil extracted within its boundaries. As a result, the Municipality of Rio das Ostras began receiving approximately BRL 250 million a year (one of the highest ratios of oil royalties per person in Brazil), which enabled it to make a number of investments. One of them was the installation of a new sewer system.

The sanitation problem will soon be solved. The municipal administration has begun installing a sewer system including over 306 km of sewers, construction of 21 pumping plants and a sanitary sewage system; the installation of a 2,170-m concrete pipeline on land and a 3,880-m high-density polyethylene marine outfall. Once the project is completed, the 200-meter long, 6-meter wide pier built to install the marine outfall on Costazul Beach will get a facelift that will convert it into a tourist attraction. Construtora Norberto Odebrecht is responsible for the 30-month project, which is already underway.

Sworn in as Mayor of Rio das Ostras on January 1st, Carlos Augusto Carvalho Balthazar intends to prioritize the use of oil royalties to finance investments aimed at improving the the local population’s quality of life. “Any and all re-sources invested in key infrastructure fa-cilities for this town, such as water supply and sewer systems, are of the utmost importance,” he observes. Carlos Augusto, who chaired the Town Council during the last three administrations, is celebrating the prospect of seeing the last of trucks carrying waste removed from septic tanks to the treatment facility in Macaé. “A full-fledged sewer system like the one being installed in Rio das Ostras will make an incalculable improvement to the quality of life of the municipality’s residents.”

Students visit jobsite

Odebrecht Contract Director Leandro Andrade Azevedo points out that the main differentiating factor for this project is the marine outfall. “Rio das Ostras will stand out from all the other towns on the Costa do Sol because it has urban infrastructure facilities of this magnitude.” He adds that, once this project is in place, the municipality’s demand for sewage service will be met until the early 2030s.

According to Leandro Azevedo, the marine outfall will be installed in February 2006. “Studies conducted by the Navy and the National Waterways Research Institute (INPH) show that, historically, that is the month when what experts call a ‘sea window’ is most likely to occur. This means that we will have a unique opportunity to get the ideal weather and sea conditions for that operation,” he explains.