ANÁLISE DE PAISAGENS TURÍSTICAS DA PRAIA DE PONTA NEGRA (NATAL/RN) COM A UTILIZAÇÃO DE INDICADORES DE QUALIDADE VISUAL: UMA CONTRIBUIÇÃO PARA O TURISMO SUSTENTÁVEL.

Landscapes are amongst the main responsible factors for the attractiveness of tourist destinations, while, at the same time, they are degraded as a result of environmentally unsustainable practices of the touristic activity. Facing this context, this paper has as its goal to investigate the visual quality of tourist landscapes of the Ponta Negra Beach (Natal/RN) and to contribute to its use in a sustainable way. In order to achieve that, it has been used the systemic method as theoretical support and a set of indicators of visual quality of the landscape as methodology. It has been observed that, in addition to the Morro do Careca dune, other physical aspects contribute to the visual quality of the Ponta Negra landscape, such as the shape of the coast as a bay. The urbanistic and environmental legislation of Natal is another element that contributes to the protection of the Ponta Negra landscape. It has been detected as detractors the artificialization caused by the insertion of physical structures that reduce the naturality of the beach, the hydric pollution caused by sewers running into the gallery of rain waters and the sound pollution that takes place as a result of the noise generated by CD and DVD peddlers. The indicators of naturality and diversity showed that these characteristics take place mainly in the surroundings of the Morro do Careca. At last, it is stresses the importance of the sustainable tourism perspective as a strategy that guarantees the protection of natural landscapes and the very maintenance of the tourist activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]