Três Pontas (, Three Tips) is a municipality located in southern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The municipality has about 57,000 inhabitants and a population density of 78.12 inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>. The road MG-167 is the only paved road that passes through the city, but the Rodovia Fernão Dias (BR-381), is less than 50 km from the city centre passing through Varginha. Almost all streets of the urban zone are paved, and water and sewage services are provided to all residents.
The municipality does not have a rugged relief (the average elevation is 900m), and there are only three areas in which the altitude reaches 1100m above sea level. One of them is the Serra de Três Pontas (Three Tips Mountain), a place known in the region for its distinctive shape and natural environment. The streams Araras and Espera are the main water courses that pass through the municipality, and flow into the Furnas Dam. The rivers Verde and Sapucaí pass on the southern boundary and flow into the Furnas Dam as well. The Municipality is located on the basin of the Grande River.
The suave climate favors the growth of coffee, the main economic wealth of the city; it is known as one of the largest producers of coffee in Brazil.
Etymology
thumb|left|350px|View of the mountain of Três Pontas with the shape that gave the city name.
The city takes its name from the peculiar shape of the mountain near the city; the three peaks were used as a reference point by ancient travelers and by runaway slaves. These slaves formed a settlement near the mountain, the Quilombo do Cascalho which was destroyed some time later.
History
The first inhabitants of the region were runaway slaves who formed two quilombos, followed by colonisers moving from Europe. Although many explorers came looking for gold, the soil in the Três Pontas area has no gold or important mineral resources, so farms were formed to create cattle and grow crops.
The chapel of Nossa Senhora d'Ajuda was founded on October 15, 1768, by the Captain Bento Ferreira de Brito. This event is held to be the founding of Três Pontas itself as a permanent settlement - mixing rural and urban characteristics, slowly forming around the chapel. The locality was formally recognised as a village in April 1841.
City status was conferred upon the village on July 3, 1857. With the emergence of trade in coffee in the mid-19th century, and with the creation of roads, crops from Três Pontas reached the international market through Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo ports. Coffee has maintained the economy of the city ever since.
Três Pontas also had a rail spur, the Trespontana Railroad, which was inaugurated in 1895. The railway was closed in 1964 due to, among other reasons, the flooding of part of the line by the Furnas Dam. The rail terminal site was redeveloped into the City Hall.
Geography
thumb|Map of Três Pontas showing its main geographic features.|left
thumb|left|The Municipality photographed by a [[satellite. The grey spot in the center is the urban area.]]
thumb|220px|left|The Serra de Três Pontas, the highest mountain on the municipality.
The municipality is bordered to the north with Campos Gerais and Santana da Vargem, to the south by the municipalities of Varginha, Elói Mendes and Paraguaçu, to the east by Nepomuceno and Carmo da Cachoeira, and to the west by Campos Gerais.
Três Pontas is about away from Belo Horizonte, the state's capital. According to the map of urban hierarchy produced by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, Três Pontas is classified as a B zone center, which means the city has a restricted influence, only over the smaller cities around it; the Institute says that Três Pontas is under the influence of Varginha, and in turn of Belo Horizonte.
Relief, soils and rocks
The municipality has a wavy relief, with altitudes between above sea level, with the city located at about . However about twenty percent of the municipality is in mountainous regions, in which the height exceeds above sea level. One of these areas is the Serra de Três Pontas (Three Tips Hill), located nineteen kilometers away from the city, where is located the highest point of the municipality, at meters above sea level. The lowest point is located on the margins of the Furnas reservoir, at about above the sea level.
Soils
Soils in the area are mostly red/yellow oxisols. According to the Brazilian Systems of Soils Classification all (or almost all) oxisols are acidic and nutrient-poor; when adjusted and fertilized these soils become highly productive.
Rocks
According to the Geologic Map of Minas Gerais, the soils in the south portion of the municipality have kianite granulite rocks. In the north, it has rocks of the ortogneissics complexes (ortogneisses granitics, granulite, migmatite and anphibolite). In the region of Três Pontas Mountain the rocks are formed by metapelitic graphitous alternated with quartzite.
Climate
The climate of Três Pontas is tropical semi-humid, with a dry season that lasts between four and five months and the average temperature is between 15 °C and 18 °C in at least one month in the year.
During the summer rains are common in the late afternoon, and temperatures at this time are always very high. In the winter the arrival of polar air masses cause temperatures to drop and frost to form; in this time of year the relative humidity is low enough to cause discomfort to the population.
Hydrography
The municipality is watered by Verde and Sapucaí rivers (dammed in Furnas), belonging to the Rio Grande drainage basin. It also has the Araras and Espera streams, that are formed by the joining of several smaller streams. The Arara stream rises near the town and moves west to flow into the reservoir of the Furnas. The Espera stream rises near the Três Pontas Mountain and flows into the Furnas near a farm with the same name. Other streams that rise on the north of Três Pontas Mountain go north and flow into Rio Grande.
Biome
Três Pontas is in the transition area between the Mata Atlântica biome and the Cerrado biome. The original vegetation of the municipality was heavily wooded, though most of the trees have been cleared to allow coffee production.
Urban area
thumb|400px|View of Três Pontas
The water and sewage service is by S.A.A.E. (Serviço Autônomo de Água e Esgoto, Water and Sewage Autonomous System). Três Pontas has 12,644 water connections, which means that 100% of urban area homes served with treated water. The sewage system serves 12,572 homes; with 99.2% of houses having access to the sewage system, the city is among the places with better sanitation in Brazil. in the municipality, that total 21,819 addresses.
The city has the Leda Mello Resende Airport, 3 kilometers from the downtown, with a paved runway, measuring 1150m in length by 20m in width, which allows for the landing and takeoff of small and medium-sized planes.
It is possible to arrive to the Pontalete district by boat, because the district is watered by the Furnas Dam.
Population
According to the 2010 census, 27,155 (50.4%) of Três Pontas population are women, and 26,705 (49.6%) are men.
The census also researched inhabitants' skin color.
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Skin color!! Number of people
- State ranking: 152 out of 853 municipalities
- National ranking: 1251 out of 5138 municipalities
- Life expectancy: 72
- Literacy rate: 88%
Economy
The municipal economy is mixed, with coffee the most important economic product.
Agriculture
Coffee is the predominant crop in Três Pontas, occupying the majority of the cultivated land. The municipality has over 30 million coffee trees spread across approximately , making it the largest coffee-producing municipality in Brazil. About 75% of its coffee production is sold through the Coffee Growers' Cooperative of the Três Pontas Region.
Other crops cultivated in the region include corn, beans, and various vegetables. In 2010, the city produced 29,808 tons of coffee, equivalent to around 1% of Brazil's national output, with an average yield of 1,440 kg per hectare, generating a total revenue of R$ 157,982,000.
thumb|450px | coffee is the main product of the city economy.
Permanent farming
{| class="wikitable"
! Year !! Banana !! Coffee !! Guava !! Orange !! Passion fruit !! Tangerine
|-
| 1990 || 26 || 24032 || - || 6630 || - || 1740
|-
| 2000 || 3 || 35904 || - || 5538 || - || 702
|-
| 2010 || 40 || 29808 || 4 || 108 || 10 || 126
|-
| Production value (R$)
|-
| 2000 || 13000 || 42474000 || - || 223 || - || 49
|-
| 2010 || 22 || 157982000 || 6 || 52 || 6 || 40
|}
Source: government statistics.
Temporary Farming
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Product !! Production Value (R$) (2000).!! Production value (R$)(2010) !! Planted area (ha)(1990).!!Planted area (ha)(2000) !! Planted area (ha) (2010)
|-
| Rice || 49 000 || 11000 || 603 || 200 || 8
|-
| Sugar cane || - || 14000 || 6118 || (sem dados) || 10
|-
| Beans || 502000 || 1764000 || 2400 || 1100 || 1200
|-
| Cassava || 77000 || 90000 || 14 || 17 || 10
|-
| Corn || 3125000 || 6300000 || 4000 || 4000 || 3500
|-
| Tomato || - || 960000 || - || - || 12
|}
Animal production
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year!! Cows!! Horses !! Buffalo !! Asinines !! Hinnies !! Swine !! Goats !! Sheep !! Chickens
|-
| 1974 || 26724 || 848 || - || - || - || 3124 || 22 || 91 || 40000
|-
| 1980 || 20261 || 1500 || - || - || 350 || 6307 || - || - || 37826
|-
| 1990 || 20500 || 1070 || - || 119 || 119 || 438 || - || 27 || 32000
|-
| 2000 || 20000 || 1620 || 120 || 20 || 140 || 2110 || 50 || 20 || 6400
|-
| 2009 || 21727 || 1790 || 262 || 80 || 185 || 1770 || 72 || 21 || 6120
|}
Source: government statistics (Animal numbers).
Industry
Três Pontas has an Industrial Park, with small and medium industries, including fertilizers, agricultural machinery, fabrics, plastic ware, precast products, metalwork, furniture, roasting, baking, graphics, and still photography.
Tourism in the region is driven by the dam and farm hotels.
Services
The service sector contributes 62% of the municipality's revenue.
Commercial establishments by activity:
- Restaurants / Bars - 315
- Hotels and others - 6
- Coffee shops, Bakeries and Ice Cream – 78
- Gas stations with services - 12
- Markets – 152
- Obs.: Total number of registered taxpayers in the municipality in various brands of activity: 3938
Public health
The municipality is responsible for about 58% of health facilities; the other 42% are private. The city has a Pronto Atendimento Municipal (Municipal Emergency Services), which attends to urgent and emergency cases. It also has the Hospital São Francisco de Assis (St. Francis Hospital), which has about 100 beds, along with surgical, obstetric, pediatric, ICU wards and a medical clinic. The hospital also offers radiology services, ultrasound and a sterilization center.
The Department of Health of Três Pontas manages various clinics scattered throughout neighborhoods.
- Center for Health Catumbi (Centro de Saúde Catumbi)
- Padre Victor Health Center (Centro de Saúde Padre Victor)
- Health Centre St. Edwirges (Centro de Saúde Santa Edwirges)
- Health Center Marilena Village (Centro de Saúde Vila Marilena)
- Center for Health Polyclinic (Centro de Saúde Policlínica)
There are also centers in rural communities and periodic visits.
The Municipal Pharmacy provides medications to low-income families.
The Municipal Health Department also carries out periodic preventive campaigns for public awareness about the prevention of various diseases, especially dengue.
Três Pontas has a Centre of Ophthalmology and a dental center, both with free care to low-income families.
There are also several private clinics in several areas of health.
According to the 2010 Census, there are 51 health facilities
The city has four state schools (that have students from 6th to 9th grade and high school) and four private schools (that have students from kindergarten to high school).
Higher education
Três Pontas is home to the Centro Universitário do Sul de Minas (University Center of South Minas).
Professional education
Três Pontas has many schools with professional courses to serve young people wishing to enter the labor market. A professional school of the SEST/SENAT is also being built.
According to the 2010 census, there are 34 schools because of the Furnas Dam.
Other attractions include the Três Pontas Mountain, about 19 kilometers from the city. On the mountain there are many trails, some waterfalls and a wall made by slaves.
A Coffee Museum, showing the coffee culture, lies on the road between Três Pontas and Varginha.
Religion
The dominant religion is Roman Catholicism.
thumb|350px|Church Nossa Senhora d'Ajuda.
The city has three parishes
- Parish Nossa Senhora d'Ajuda (Our Lady of Help) . The main church is the Matriz Nossa Senhora d'Ajuda Church, in downtown Três Pontas; the building houses the remains of Padre Victor.
- Parish Nossa Senhora Aparecida (Our Lady of Aparecida). The main church is the Aparecida Church
- Parish Cristo Redentor. The main church is the Nossa Senhora das Graças (Our Lady of Graces) Church (known as Catumbi Church).
The three parishes belong to the Diocese of Campanha.
Blessed persons
thumb|350px|St. Joseph Carmel located in the Santa Inês neighborhood founded by the [[The Venerable#Catholic|venerable "Nossa Mãe".]]
The Carmelite nun Tereza Margarida of the Heart of Mary founded a contemplative monastery in Três Pontas.
Communications
Four radio stations broadcast in the Três Pontas area.
- Sentinela FM - 99.9 MHz
- Community Radio Liberdade FM - 87.9 MHz
- Radio Três Pontas - AM 1540 kHz
- Transamérica Hits - Fm 92.5 MHz
There is one newspaper headquarted in the city, Jornal Correio Trespontano (Trespontano Mail Newspaper).
Events
The city's anniversary is celebrated on July 3, with shows and parties.
Expocafé occurs in June. This is one of the biggest events of the coffee growing country.
See also
- List of municipalities in Minas Gerais
References
External links
- IBGE
- AluguelTP - Aluguel de casas, aptos e salas comerciais em Três Pontas
- CicloTP - Ciclism and trailsin Três Pontas and region
- Prefeitura Municipal - Prefeitura Municipal de Três Pontas.
- Blog do Silvano Alves - Blog that shows the news of Três Pontas.
- Câmara Municipal de Três Pontas - Camara of Três Pontas
- Map of Três Pontas on Google Maps
- Map of Três Pontas on Google Map Maker