Palmas, Tocantins
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Palmas | |||
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| Motto: Essa terra é nossa | |||
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| Country |  Brazil |
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| Region | North | ||
| State | Tocantins | ||
| Founded | 20 May 1989 | ||
| Government | |||
| - Mayor | Raul Filho (PT) | ||
| Area | |||
| - Total | 2,218.9 km² (856.7 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 230 m (755 ft) | ||
| Population (2005) | |||
| - Total | 208,165 | ||
| - Density | 93.8/km² (242.9/sq mi) | ||
| HDI (2000) | 0.809 – high | ||
| Website: Palmas, Tocantins | |||
Palmas is the capital of the Brazilian state of Tocantins. According to IBGE estimates from July 2005, the city had 208,165 inhabitants. It has an area of 2474,95 km².
Palmas was founded in 1990, with the purpose of being the capital of the newest Brazilian state Tocantins, which was established after the promulgation of the new 1988 Brazilian Constitution. The city has a well-designed road system, and its urban zoning is modelled on that of Brasília. It has - for instance- a beautiful symmetrical park in the city centre.
In 2002, the Lajeado Hydroelectric Power Plant reservoir was completed, at which point the city gained many river beaches, and also the huge Ponte da Amizade Presidente Fernando Henrique Cardoso, which crosses over 8 kilometers over the reservoir, connecting Palmas with the major highway BR-153.
The Praça dos Girassóis is an urban square in the city's birthplace, where government facilities are based. A new airport was inaugurated in 2002, 20 km (12.42 mi) from the downtown. Palmas has long and wide avenues, landscaped areas for parking and rotatory, known as "queijinhos".
It has the second lowest population density of the state capitals in Brazil, preceded only by Boa Vista, Roraima (which does however have more inhabitants: 242.179).
The Palmas Airport connects Palmas with many Brazilian cities.
The city is home to the Federal University of Tocantins.
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[edit] Geography
Tocantins forms the boundary between the Amazon Rainforest and the coastal savanna. As a result, the state's geography is varied. Many rivers cross through the state (including one of the same name), and there are over 20 archaeologically significant sites found in Tocantins.
[edit] Climate
An equatorial climate is a type of tropical climate in which there is no dry season – all months have mean precipitation values of at least 60mm. It is usually found at latitudes within five degrees of the equator – which are dominated by the Intertropical Convergence Zone. The equatorial climate is denoted Af in the Köppen climate classification. Tropical rainforest is the natural vegetation in equatorial regions.
[edit] Vegetation
The Amazon represents over half of the planet's remaining rainforests and comprises the largest and most species-rich tract of tropical rainforest in the world. Wet tropical forests are the most species-rich biome, and tropical forests in the Americas are consistently more species rich than the wet forests in Africa and Asia.[1] As the largest tract of tropical rainforest in the Americas, the Amazonian rainforests have unparalleled biodiversity. More than 1/3 of all species in the world live in the Amazon Rainforest.[2]
[edit] Economy
The GDP for the city was R$ 1,733,266,000 (2005).[3]
The per capita income for the city was R$ 8,326 (2005).[4]
[edit] Education
Portuguese is the official national language, and thus the primary language taught in schools. But English and Spanish are part of the official high school curriculum.
[edit] Educational institutions
- Universidade Federal do Tocantins (UFT);
- Centro Universitário Luterano de Palmas (Ceulp-Ulbra);
- Faculdade Católica do Tocantins (Católica do Tocantins);
- and a few others.
[edit] Infrastructure
[edit] National Airport
The facility occupies one of Brazil’s largest airport sites and has privileged location near the Lageado Hydroelectric Station. Designed with a modern concept of visual communication, the new Palmas Airport Complex contains an Aeroshopping area, a program developed by Infraero aiming to turn Brazil’s main airports into true commercial centers with their own brand and identity. The passenger terminal has 12.300 square meters of constructed area and capacity to serve up to 370 thousand people a year. It has a food court, cultural space, shops, panoramic deck, elevators and air conditioning. The runway can receive aircraft the size of a Boeing 767. There are three taxiways and aprons for general aviation, making operations more flexible. The airport has full infrastructure that includes a control tower and installations for the Air Navigation Group, fire brigade, a covered equipment parking area, canteen and training rooms, two aircraft fueling stations, a gate with electronic entry control, guard booths. parking and flight protection buildings, besides a 4 km (2.48 mi) access road linking the airport to the Tocantins capital city’s main thoroughfare.
[edit] Highways
Rodovia Coluna Prestes (TO-050), that connects with Brasília. BR-153 and BR-010.
[edit] Sports
In sports, the most notable football (soccer) club in the city is Palmas FR, which plays at Nilton Santos Stadium.
[edit] References
- ^ Turner, I.M. 2001. The ecology of trees in the tropical rain forest. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. ISBN 0-521-80183-4
- ^ Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Plants, Amazon River Animals
- ^ (2005) GDP (PDF) (in Portuguese), Palmas, Brazil: IBGE. ISBN 85-240-3919-1. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
- ^ (2005) per capita income (PDF) (in Portuguese), Palmas, Brazil: IBGE. ISBN 85-240-3919-1. Retrieved on 2007-07-18.
[edit] External links
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