Tourist use in the Costa do Sol State Park (RJ, Brazil): a reading on challenges and potentialities

Abstract

The institution of protected areas represents one of the main global strategies for the conservation of biodiversity, the climatic balance and the prevention of future health and ecological crises. In this context, parks are of central importance, especially in Brazil, a country of continental dimensions and a leader in biological megadiversity. According to the National System of Nature Conservation Units, the main legal provision, the management of these areas aims, in addition to protecting nature itself, the development of research, the carrying out of ecological tourism and environmental education activities. With this background as a starting point, the objective of this article is to critically interpret the challenges related to tourist use in the Costa do Sol State Park (PECS), located in the coastal area of the State of Rio de Janeiro. To this end, the qualitative research was based not only on a bibliographic and documentary survey, but also on direct observation during the meetings of the Consultative Council and the Thematic Chamber for Public Use of PECS. In the period from June 2016 to March 2020, field research enabled the identification of fifteen recurring themes in relation to tourist use in the park, systematized in four analytical axes associated with the complexity of the territorial configuration, the regional economic context, the social and cultural dynamics of the surrounding area and the conditions of the infrastructure available in that protected area. Based on the results obtained, it is possible to state that, although there are countless potentialities for this, tourist use in the PECS still occurs in a disordered and conflicting manner, which is a secondary theme in terms of planning and management priorities of the protected area.