Porto Velho 352796 219825228 2008-06-17T01:12:00Z Skanter 7122419 {{Infobox City |official_name = Pôrto Velho |image_skyline = Porto Velho 1 09072007.jpg |imagesize = 250px |image_caption = Porto Velho and the Madeira River |image_flag = flag porto velho.svg |image_seal = Brasão_Porto_Velho.gif |image_map = Rondonia Municip PortoVelho.svg |mapsize = 250px |map_caption = Location of Porto Velho |subdivision_type = [[List of countries|Country]] |subdivision_type1 = [[Regions of Brazil|Region]] |subdivision_type2 = [[States of Brazil|State]] |subdivision_name = {{flagicon|BRA}} [[Brazil]] |subdivision_name1 = [[North Region, Brazil|North]] |subdivision_name2 = [[Rondônia]] |leader_title = Mayor | |leader_name = Roberto Sobrinho ([[Workers' Party (Brazil)|PT]]) | |area_note = |area_total_km2 = 34082 |population_as_of = 2005 |population_total = 373917 |population_density_km2 = 10.9 |population_total = 373917 |population_footnotes = [http://www.citymayors.com/gratis/brazilian_cities.html] |timezone = [[UTC|UTC-4]] |utc_offset = -4 |timezone_DST = |utc_offset_DST = |latd=8 |latm=45 |lats=43 |latNS=S |longd=63 |longm=54 |longs=14 |longEW=W |elevation_ft = |blank_name = '''[[Human Development Index|HDI]]''' (2000) |blank_info = 0.763 – <span style="color:#fc0">medium</span> |website = [http://www.portovelho.ro.gov.br Porto Velho, Rondônia] |footnotes = |}} '''Pôrto Velho''' is the [[capital]] of the [[Brazil]]ian [[state]] of [[Rondônia]], in the upper [[Amazon River]] basin. The population is about 334,661 people. Located at the [[border]] of Rondônia and the state of [[Amazonas State, Brazil|Amazonas]], the town is an important trade center of [[cassiterite]], the mining of which represents the most important economic activity in the [[region]], and a transportation and communication center. It is located on the eastern shore of the [[Madeira River]], one of the main [[tributary|tributaries]] of the [[Amazon River]]. Officially founded on [[October 2]] [[1914]], Porto Velho was started by pioneers around [[1907]], during the construction of the [[Madeira-Mamoré Railroad]]. After the [[railroad]] was completed, the local population was about one thousand inhabitants; its buildings were chiefly the railway's installations and the wooden houses of the [[Caribbean]] workers - hence the name of the town's largest district by then, "[[Barbados|Barbadoes]] Town", nowadays called the "Alto do Bode". During the first sixty years, the city's [[Urban planning|development]] was directly connected to the railway's activities. The town prospered during the [[rubber]] boom, but then when low-cost [[Malaysia]]n rubber made rubber from the [[Amazon Basin|Amazon]] uncompetitive, the region's [[Economics|economy]] ground to a halt. Cities like [[Santo Antônio do Madeira]], which had a [[tram]] line and a weekly [[newspaper]] by the time of Porto Velho's foundation, are nothing but ruins nowadays. Porto Velho's survival is associated with the better conditions of the area where it was built, its easy access by the river, its harbor: these were all considerations in the choice of Porto Velho as the capital of the newly-formed Federal [[Territory (country subdivision)|Territory]] of [[Guaporé]], in [[1943]]. Only with the beginning of [[World War II]] there was another cycle of progress in the region. When the [[Allied]] forces lost control over the Malaysian rubber, Amazon's was needed due to the [[war effort]]. This produced what is know in Brazil as the "second [[rubber boom]]". But when the war ended, the region's economy once again came to a halt. Porto Velho's modern [[history]] begins with the discovery of cassiterite around the city, and of [[gold]] on the Madeira River, by the end of the fifties. Also, the government's decision to allow large cattle farms in the territory began a trend of migration into the city. Almost one million people moved to Rondônia, and Porto Velho's population increased to three hundred thousand. This intense migration caused much trouble for the city. For example, the suburban boroughs are nothing but [[shanty town]]s, among many other problems. ==Geography== [[Image:Portovelho11062007.JPG|thumb|right|Madeira River and Porto Velho.]] ===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 60[[millimetres|mm]]. It is usually found at [[latitude]]s 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. ===Vegetation=== [[Image:Rio-madeira.jpg|thumb|left|Madeira River and [[Amazon Rainforest]].]] The Amazon represents over half of the planet's remaining [[rainforest]]s 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]].<ref name ="Turner 2001">Turner, I.M. 2001. ''The ecology of trees in the tropical rain forest''. [[Cambridge University Press]], Cambridge. ISBN 0-521-80183-4</ref> 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.<ref>[http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildplaces/amazon/index.cfm Amazon Rainforest, Amazon Plants, Amazon River Animals]</ref> ==Economy== The [[GDP]] for the city was R$ 3,656,512,000 ([[2005]]).<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/economia/pibmunicipios/2005/tab01.pdf|title=GDP|publisher=[[IBGE]]|location=Porto Velho, Brazil|format=PDF|isbn=85-240-3919-1|accessdate=2007-07-18|year=2005|language=Portuguese}}</ref> The [[per capita income]] for the city was R$ 9,779 ([[2005]]).<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.ibge.gov.br/home/estatistica/economia/pibmunicipios/2005/tab01.pdf|title=per capita income|publisher=[[IBGE]]|location=Porto Velho, Brazil|format=PDF|isbn=85-240-3919-1|accessdate=2007-07-18|year=2005|language=Portuguese}}</ref> == Education == [[Image:UNIR.jpg|thumb|Federal University of Rondônia in Porto Velho.]] [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] is the official national language, and thus the primary language taught in schools. But [[English language|English]] and [[Spanish language|Spanish]] are part of the official [[high school]] curriculum. ===Educational institutions=== * Universidade Federal de Rondônia (Unir); * Escola Agrotécnica Federal de Colorado do Oeste (EAFCO); * Instituto Luterano de Ensino Superior de Porto Velho (Iles-Ulbra); * Faculdade de Ciências Administrativas e de Tecnologia (Fatec-RO); * Faculdade de Ciências Biomédicas de Cacoal (Facimed); * Faculdade de Ciências Humanas, Exatas e Letras de Rondônia (Faro); * Faculdade da Amazônia (Iesa); * and many others. ==Culture== ===Expovel=== Agricultural event in Porto Velho. ===Museum=== Museum of Estrada de Ferro Madeira-Mamoré. ===Theatre=== Teatro Municipal, in Joaquim Nabuco [[Avenue]] ([[Downtown]]) and Teatro Uirassu Rodrigues, in José Bonifácio [[street]]. ==Infrastructure== ===International Airport=== [[Image:Aeroporto de Porto Velho2.jpg|thumb|Porto Velho/Governador Jorge Teixeira de Oliveira International Airport.]] '''Porto Velho International Airport''', located seven kilometers from the city, has as its main access Av. Governador Jorge Teixeira de Oliveira, with two lanes. The average commute is ten minutes. Buses from downtown run to the airport every hour, and there is a fleet of taxis serving only the airport. The airport is served by 98 scheduled flights weekly, most going to other large Brazilian cities. Scheduled regional routes go to the municipalities of Costa Marques (RO), Lábrea (AM), Manicoré (AM), Cacoal (RO), Jí-Paraná (RO), Vilhena (RO) and Novo Aripuanã (RO). The scheduled airlines flying out of Porto Velho Airport are Vasp, Varig, TAM, Tavaj Rico and Cruiser, besides air taxi firms – Especial, Eucatur, Assis Aéreo Táxi, Tropical Táxi Aéreo, Rima Táxi and Aeronorte. There are also small aircraft owned by private individuals and public institutions (Rondônia state government). The presence of Porto Velho Air Base ensures considerable movement of military aircraft. The local people refer to Porto Velho International as Belmont Airport because it is located in this district. It became an international airport in 2002. It is located 88 meters (2.90 feet), at 084249 South latitude and 0635410 West longitude. ===Highways=== [[Image:SinalizaçãoPVH.jpg|thumb|right|[[Highway]] in Porto Velho.]] *BR-174; *BR-317; *BR-319; *BR-364; *BR-364; *BR-421; *BR-425; *BR-429; *RO-010; *RO-101; *RO-490. ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== {{sisterlinks|Porto Velho}} {{Geolinks-cityscale|-8.7603|-63.9051}} {{Brazil topics}} {{Demographics of Brazil}} {{Capitals of Brazilian states}} [[Category:Cities, towns and villages in Rondônia State]] [[ar:بورتو فاليو]] [[ast:Porto Velho]] [[ca:Porto Velho]] [[cs:Porto Velho]] [[co:Porto Velho]] [[de:Porto Velho]] [[es:Porto Velho]] [[fr:Porto Velho]] [[gl:Porto Velho]] [[ko:포르투벨류]] [[io:Porto Velho]] [[bpy:পর্টো ভেলহো]] [[id:Porto Velho]] [[it:Porto Velho]] [[he:פורטו וליו]] [[lt:Porto Veljas]] [[nl:Porto Velho]] [[no:Porto Velho]] [[oc:Porto Velho]] [[pl:Porto Velho]] [[pt:Porto Velho]] [[ro:Porto Velho]] [[ru:Порту-Велью]] [[simple:Porto Velho]] [[fi:Porto Velho]] [[sv:Porto Velho]] [[tg:Порту-Велю]] [[vo:Porto Velho]]