The lack of Basic Sanitation in the peripheries of São Luís – MA and its impacts on Sustainable Development: A systematic review of the literature

Basic sanitation is essential for public health and sustainable development, but in Brazilian cities such as São Luís, serious inequalities persist between central and peripheral regions. In marginalized areas, a large part of the population still lives without access to treated water, sanitation, waste management and urban drainage. This reality compromises human dignity, perpetuates vulnerabilities and hinders the achievement of the 2030 Agenda, especially SDGs 3, 6 and 11. For this reason, this study aims to analyze the impacts of the lack of basic sanitation in the peripheries of São Luís on local sustainable development, identifying socio-environmental and economic consequences of this exclusion. The research adopted a mixed approach, combining a Systematic Review of the Literature (Web of Science) with documentary analysis of data from the IBGE (2022) and the SNIS (2023), allowing triangulation between theoretical and empirical evidence. The results reveal a significant deficit of coverage in the peripheries, with a difference of more than 30 percentage points in sanitary sewage in relation to the center and high precariousness of urban drainage. Impacts on public health were identified, such as a higher incidence of waterborne diseases, parasitosis, hepatitis A and infant mortality. In the environmental field, water pollution, soil degradation and proliferation of vectors were observed. Socioeconomically, there were additional costs to the health system, loss of income and real estate devaluation. It is concluded that the universalization of sanitation in São Luís requires integrated public policies, investments in infrastructure and institutional strengthening to break the cycle of poverty and align the capital with the goals of the 2030 Agenda.