Afuá

Coordinates: 00°09′25″S 50°23′13″W / 0.15694°S 50.38694°W / -0.15694; -50.38694
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Afuá
Municipality
Flag of Afuá
Official seal of Afuá
Location in the State of Pará
Location in the State of Pará
Coordinates: 00°09′25″S 50°23′13″W / 0.15694°S 50.38694°W / -0.15694; -50.38694
Country Brazil
RegionNorth
State Pará
FoundedAugust 2, 1891
Area
 • Total8,372.772 km2 (3,232.745 sq mi)
Elevation
8 m (26 ft)
Population
 (2020 [1])
 • Total39,567
 • Density4.4/km2 (11/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−3 (BRT)
Postal Code
68890-000

Afuá is a Brazilian municipality located in the state of Pará. Its population as of 2020 is estimated to be 39,567 people. The area of the municipality is 8,372.772 km2. The city belongs to the mesoregion Marajó and to the microregion of Furos de Breves.

The municipality is contained in the 59,985-square-kilometre (23,160 sq mi) Marajó Archipelago Environmental Protection Area, a sustainable use conservation unit established in 1989 to protect the environment of the delta region.[2] The municipal seat lies at the mouth of the Cajari River where it enters the Baía do Vieira Grande. The municipality contains the 65,181 hectares (161,070 acres) Charapucu State Park, a strictly protected conservation unit created in 2010.[3]

The town has been off-limits to cars since 2002, as there is no space for cars on the island where the town is located. It has been called the Venice of the Amazon, because many of the homes are on stilts and the town is only accessible by boat, though there is an airstrip in town which is often underwater. The town's mayor has described it as a model for net-zero emissions.[4]

References[edit]

  1. ^ IBGE 2020
  2. ^ APA Arquipélago do Marajó (in Portuguese), ISA: Instituto Socioambiental, retrieved 2016-06-27
  3. ^ PES Charapucu (in Portuguese), ISA: Instituto Socioambiental, retrieved 2016-06-30
  4. ^ Magolis, Mac (12 May 2024). "A car-free town in the Amazon serves lessons for pedaling to net zero emissions". NPR.