Rio cotinguiba, memórias abandonadas e a visão de uma potencialidade descuidada

Abstract

The present study raises a discussion about the current situation of the river that cuts through the city of Laranjeiras/SE. In the author's view, due to its great participation in relation to the colonization and growth of the place, the Cotinguiba river must be considered and preserved as a local heritage, as well as the set of material assets (architectural, urban and landscape) that exist in the city and they were listed by IPHAN in 1995. That said, the general objective of this work is to present the importance of the river for the municipality of Laranjeiras and the creation of guidelines for the preservation of Cotinguiba, which is a Cultural and Environmental Heritage. The specific objectives aim to: emphasize the relevance of this river for the history of Laranjeiras, for the families of fishermen and shellfish gatherers who depend on it for work, to promote tourism in the city, in addition to identifying the potential negative and positive impacts in three strategic points (downtown Laranjeiras, Quintalé neighborhood and Vila de Pescadores) and also highlight the importance of the river in the composition of the hydrographic picture of the state of Sergipe. It should be noted that the Cotinguiba sub-basin is one of the main sources of the Sergipe river basin. Other points to be addressed with this work are to give a brief diagnosis of the river, expose the consequences generated by pollution and silting, show the importance of Heritage for society and emphasize that Heritage Education is a great ally to help preserve the history of the place. The work alsoseeks to rescue some of the memories that some people from Laranjeiras carry from a time when the Cotinguiba river had clean waters and the population's experience with it was greater. The methodology adopted was the search for bibliographic references focusing on themes related to Heritage and Environmental Preservation, environmental degradation and Heritage and Environmental Education. In addition, visits were made to some stretches of the river for data collection. Interviews and informal conversations with residents were also carried out to understand their relationship with the river, as well as to rescue memories of their experiences in it, trying to find clues of what happened to cause this disregard for Cotinguiba. From this information, threeareas considered relevant to the author were selected, in order to understand the relationship and the way in which they intervene in Cotinguiba. Finally, it is intended to propose guidelines aimed at the recovery and preservation of the Cotinguiba River.