Geodiversity is considered as the natural range of geological, geomorphological, and soil features, including their assemblages, relationships, properties, interpretations, and systems. A method developed for the quantitative assessment of geodiversity was applied to Paraná, a Brazilian state with an area of about 200,000 km 2. The method is based on the overlay of a grid over different maps at scales ranging from 1/500,000 to 1/650,000, with the final Geodiversity Index the sum of five partial indexes calculated on a 25 9 25 km grid. The partial indexes represent the main components of geodiversity, including geology (stratigraphy and lithology), geomorphology, paleontology, and soils. The fifth partial index covers mineral occurrences of geodiversity, such precious stones and metals, energy and industrial minerals, mineral waters, and springs. The Geodiversity Index takes the form of an isoline map that can be used as a tool in land-use planning, particularly in identifying priority areas for conservation, management, and use of natural resources at the state level.
Version française abrégéeLes géomorphosites sont des formes de relief qui ont acquis une valeur particulière en raison de la perception humaine (Panizza et Piacente, 1993). Cette valeur peut être d'ordre scientifique, écologique, culturel, esthétique et/ou économique (Reynard, 2005). Le développement de méthodologies d'évaluation des différentes valeurs des géomorphosites est l'une des préoccupations importantes de la recherche actuelle sur le patrimoine géomorphologique. Durant la dernière décennie, différents groupes de chercheurs ont proposé des démarches méthodologiques en vue d'évaluer, de comparer et de sélectionner les géo-
The development of research involving the geodiversity concept has been growing in the last two decades. The quantification of spatial patterns of geodiversity seems to be one of the most promising lines of research related with natural diversity, since it explores the relations between abiotic elements. This last aspect can be crucial, not only for territorial management, but also for conservation initiatives associated with biodiversity. The main aim of this study was to develop a new GIS procedure, based on centroid analysis, to calculate a geodiversity index, using kernel density, and to test its application in two municipalities with different area surfaces and geological setting. The proposed method is an upgrade of those previously published based on a spatial grid system at a landscape scale. The results of this method show that it is possible to obtain a spatial geodiversity standard that reflects the spatial variation of natural abiotic elements on both territories and that lithology and geomorphology are the key drivers that control the geodiversity index. In addition, the testing procedures have demonstrated that this method can be applied to areas with any geological and geomorphological setting and at different scales and also to be a useful tool for land use planning.
Geoconservation-the conservation of valued geodiversity features through their assessment and management-has strongly increased during the last two decades emerging as a new research area in geosciences (e.g.
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