22°58′16″S43°12′42″W / 22.971117°S 43.211718°W /-22.971117; -43.211718
Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon (Portuguese:Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas) is alagoon in the district ofLagoa in theZona Sul (South Zone) area ofRio de Janeiro. The lagoon is connected to theAtlantic Ocean, allowingsea water to enter by acanal along the edge of a park locally known as Jardim de Alah.[1]
Although it receives its waters from diverse rivertributaries from the surrounding hillsides, among those that stand out is the river Rio dos Macacos (today channelized), which introduces contaminated[2] water. The water of the lagoon comes from thedamming of an opening to the sea caused by successive build-ups of earth. This separates it from theAtlantic Ocean, except for theCanal do Jardim de Alah.
Initially inhabited by theTamoios Indians who dominated the lagoon, such as Piraguá ("Still Water") or Sacopenapan ("Path of the Herons"). The arrival of the Portuguese colonizer, Dr António Salema (1575–1578), who was at the time also the Governor and Captain General of theCaptaincy ofRio de Janeiro, intended to install asugar mill on the banks of the lagoon. To free himself of the undesirable presence of the native Indians he spread clothes that had been worn by people sick withsmallpox along the banks of the lagoon intending to kill the Indians. Such was the sugar cane plantation and the building of the "Engenho d'El-Rey" ("The King's Mill"), where today's Centro de Recepção aos Visitantes do Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro (theRio de Janeiro Botanical Garden Visitors' Reception Center) operates.
These lands were once acquired by Salema from the towncouncilor, Amorim Soares, causing the lagoon to be called "Lagoa de Amorim Soares" (Amorim Soares Lagoon). With his expulsion from the city in 1609 the land was sold to his son-in-law, Sebastião Fagundes Varela, with the consequent name change to "Lagoa do Fagundes" (Fagundes' Lagoon). That landowner, by way of acquisition and invasion, increased the size of his landholdings in the region, in such as way that around 1620 he owned all the land from today's neighborhoods ofHumaitá toLeblon.
In 1702, his great-granddaughter, Petronilha Fagundes, then 35 years old, married the young PortugueseCavalry official, Rodrigo de Freitas de Carvalho—then only 18 years old — which lends his name to the lagoon. Awidower, Rodrigo de Freitas de Carvalho returned to Portugal in 1717 and died there in 1748.
The region stayed in the hands of the tenants without great fanfare until the beginning of the 19th century. Then, in 1808, the Portuguese Royal Family arrived during thetransfer of the Portuguese court to Brazil. The Prince Regent appropriated the Engenho da Lagoa (Lagoon Mill) to build a powder factory and construct the Real Horto Botânico (Royal Botanical Garden) — today's Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden).
During the 19th century many diverse solutions were thought of for the problem of stagnated water — until, in 1922, the Repartição de Saneamento das Zonas Rurais (Bureau of Rural Sanitation) presented a project to "... clean up and beautify the Capital for the Independence Centennial festivities". That project involveddredging a canal to reconnect the lagoon to the sea, and deepening the land bar. The soil removed to build the canal formed the island of Caiçara, within the lagoon, site ofCaiçaras Club (pt).
In a short time,embankments formed on its edges, which gradually reduced its surface area, providing land for the Jockey Club Brasileiro, theJardim de Alah, and the sport seat of the Clube Naval on the island of Piraquê. The dredged channel is now called the Jardim de Alah Channel. The lagoon today represents one of the principal tourist attractions of the capital of Rio de Janeiro.
It is also known as "The Heart of Rio de Janeiro". The Lagoa neighborhood named after the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas. It is anupper middle-class neighborhood and it has one of the largesthuman development indexes in the country. Part of the lagoon is landfill that occurred in the middle of the 20th century. Many hills, such asCatacumba, Praia do Pinto, and others, occupied the area around the lagoon. For many years they housed more than fifty thousand people. However, because of poor construction quality and safety risks, after more than twenty years on the hillsides the mayor expelled all of the inhabitants and "tore down" the hills, burying a large part of the city. The inhabitants left for the suburbs and started to live in housing. Apartment buildings and parks were built in the place of the hillsides .
With 2.4 millionsquare meters (0.93 squaremiles) of surface area, aquatic sports such as rowing or simply biking happen around its reflecting water. It is home to a rowing stadium (Estádio de Remo da Lagoa), a paved biking path of 7.5kilometers (more than 4.5miles), diverse leisure equipment, and foodkiosks that offer regional and internationalgastronomy items. Some of the most important sports clubs in the city are by the lagoon:
The lagoon is surrounded by the districts ofIpanema,Leblon,Gávea,Jardim Botânico,Copacabana,Botafogo, andHumaitá. It attracts quite a number of visitors during the Christmas holidays because of its famous and gigantic Christmas Tree, which is built over a floating platform that moves around the lagoon. TheEva Klabin Foundation is located on the banks of thelagoon. The lagoon will hostcanoe sprint androwing events for the2016 Summer Olympics, and rowing events for the2016 Summer Paralympics.[3][needs update]
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TheRowing Stadium of the Lagoon is asports venue nearLagoa Rodrigo de Freitas on the lagoon.Therowing,canoe flatwater andwater ski competitions took place there during the2007 Pan American Games. Spectators were able to watch from the renewedRowing Stadium (Estádio de Remo) and all along the bike lane around the Lake. The rowing and sprint canoeing events of the2016 Summer Olympics also took place in the Lagoon.
Thelagoon has several environmental problems, including water as well as land pollution. Currently, a private company is sponsoring a project to depollute the lagoon,[4] but this will not be quick or simple. There is a concern about the health risks for athletes during the2016 Summer Olympics and2016 Summer Paralympics. In 2015, thirteen American paddlers had stomach problems after a competition in the lagoon, which was considered a test event for the Olympics; they suffered from vomiting and diarrhea.[5] Further, it is recognized that there is not sufficient time to clean the lagoon effectively for the Olympics.[6]
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