NovaBR prioritizes environment preservation

Investing in infrastructure and economic development of the State, but with strategies to preserve the environment, is a priority for the public policies of the Government of Pará, before, during and after the performance of major works. All projects performed by the Executive will initiate only after the environmental licensing. The NovaBR Project – the construction of a traffic corridor that will bring speed, convenience and safety to public transportation, creating new equipment in the main route to and from the capital of Pará – is one of the examples of state investments that have a positive environmental impact in the Metropolitan Region of Belém.

“The Project provides a new urban landscape configuration along the first 10.8 km of the BR-316 highway. Around 1,600 seedlings and 26 different types of trees will be planted as new landscape components. This stage will be performed at the end of the work”, says engineer Eduardo Ribeiro, director general of the Metropolitan Transportation Management Center (NGTM).

Initially, the NovaBR Project planned the cutting with vegetal suppression of three samaumeira trees (species of the Amazon region known as “tree of life”), for being in the domain range of the works. However, the State government, in an unprecedented operation, decided to keep the trees through transplanting and project readjustment. “We were able to save three samaumeira trees that would be sacrificed. The largest of them we were able to transplant to the surroundings of the viaduct located at Mário Covas Ave. with BR-316. They are sprouting regularly, and they are also accompanied by inspections by agronomists. It was unprecedented, because for the first time a tree of that size was transplanted.” emphasizes Eduardo Ribeiro.

Currently, according to the NGTM Director General, the Project is in the phase of interference relocation. “We are working on fiber communication networks, water network pipes, old drainage pipes. We will implement the new drainage galleries along the highway and the exclusive lanes planned for the New BR highway”, he explains. All unserviceable material removed from the work is destined for licensed areas, as an environmental protection measure.

Mobility

One of the objectives of the NovaBR Project is that the population starts to use more public transportation, as of the implementation of the improvements planned for the highway. “About 20% of the traffic on the BR highway is made by public transport vehicles that carry approximately 80% of the people in the area. Only 20% of people who travel on the BR use private vehicles, which represent 80% of the vehicles that travel on the road”, informs Eduardo Ribeiro.

“As we create better mobility conditions at RMB, we have implemented a faster, safer and more comfortable system for public transportation users. People can choose to use this type of transport and leave their cars at home, which can guarantee an important environmental impact for the area”, says the engineer. The new highway will also ensure safe circulation for cyclists and pedestrians. Thirteen crossing walkway points will be installed.

Monitoring

The Project’s Environmental Control Program is part of the Bird Fauna Monitoring Program, a condition of the project’s environmental implementation license, due to its large size. “Firstly, we carried out a diagnosis of bird species existing in the surroundings of the works, so that throughout its performance we could assess if there was any environmental change”, explains the NGTM representative. The monitoring is performed by Odebrecht Engenharia e Construção Internacional (OECI), a company hired for the performance of the work, which sends monthly reports that are audited by the management company and the NGTM.

Formulator of the Via Metrópole Program, the NGTM manages the implementation work of the new metropolitan transportation system, which has as a prerequisite the improvement of NovaBR’s infrastructure to support the implementation of the project. The state agency manages the rehabilitation works of the highway and the implementation of the BRT system to transit on the highway. With international resources, around R$ 400 million are invested in the Nova BR Project, which seeks to create new conditions for mobility in the Metropolitan Region of Belém. About 2.5 million people will benefit from the Project.