Mid-and large-scale geodiversity calculation in Fuentes Carrionas (NW Spain) and Serra do Cadeado (Paraná, Brazil): methodology and application for land management.ABSTRACT. A state-of-the-art geodiversity concept, its use and scientific development are presented. Methodologies for geodiversity calculation are assessed, as well as their aim and problems. Geodiversity calculation methodology based on biodiversity richness index is explained and applied to two different areas: Fuentes Carrionas, a high mountain midlatitude environment in northern Spain, and Serra do Cadeado, a tropical mid-mountain environment in southern Brasil. A geodiversity map of Fuentes Carrionas proves that glacial cirques over 2000 m a.s.l. keep a high geodiversity related to a periglacial and glacial environment, whereas a geodiversity map of Serra do Cadeado shows that high geodiversity areas are situated at its main structural scarp. Geodiversity calculation needs to take scale and hierarchy issues into account, which makes comparison only possible if the same scale is used. Geodiversity calculation is a useful tool for land management as it defines areas subject to protection due to the richness of abiotic elements. It is also useful in terms of environmental impact assessment and geotourism evaluation at remote areas.
Research related to geodiversity aim at valuing abiotic aspects as inseparable components of natural heritage and, thus, as well as biodiversity, must be understood and valued through the ordering of their use and geoconservation. Geodiversity studies are developed based on several approaches, from the broadest ones, which contemplate the measurement of abiotic elements fully, to those that assess geoheritage through geodiversity values. The present research follows the broader approach of evaluating and analysing the entire geodiversity, applying the measurement of abiotic elements without their valuation, and spatialising areas with a greater and lesser density of the selected elements related in this research lithology, relief, and soil. For this purpose, bases produced by systematic surveys of Brazilian research institutions were used. As a result, the mapping of the subindexes obtained pointing from the division into 5 classes, the areas which present greater and lesser diversity of each element, as well as the synthesis map for the indexes of geodiversity elements in Brazil, considering the three elements selected for this mapping. The analysis of the indexes' spatialisation was carried out from a descriptive and genetic perspective, aiming to explain the causes of the distribution of the abiotic elements in the Brazilian territory, providing subindexes for studies in the scope of environmental services, nature, and territory conservation planning. A spatial analysis was also carried out between the Geodiversity Index Map and the Brazilian conservation units and the areas where geopark projects are being developed.
This work aims to carry out a quantitative evaluation of geodiversity in a unit of Cadeado Range, Paraná state, Brazil, on the eastern edge of the Paraná sedimentary basin. We identified and defined eight compartments or landscape units using an integrated analysis of the set of elements of their geoecological structure: geomorphological, geological, pedological, hydrologic, and socioeconomic features. We made a quantitative evaluation of the abiotic elements of the landscape, aiming to understand the spatial distribution of geodiversity. To this, we applied the calculation of geodiversity index proposed by Serrano and Ruiz-flaño ((62): [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] 2007), in order to determine the geodiversity richness index for each compartment, as well as the distribution or relative frequency of the elements. It was possible to demonstrate that compartments with a wider territorial area do not necessarily hold a greater richness index and that compartments with greater richness area do not necessarily shelter a better equability or relative frequency among elements. Therefore, areas with a higher geodiversity index are associated with a balance between element distribution in a given area and its richness. We believe that this method can inform future studies to compare rates of geodiversity and biodiversity in the territory with a nature conservation aim.
ResumoO termo geodiversidade vem sendo utilizado para atender a necessidade dos pesquisadores das áreas de geociências para se referirem ao complexo físico da paisagem, abrangendo os elementos abióticos como rochas, formas de relevo, solos e rios, configurando-se como um análogo ao termo biodiversidade. Os diferentes elementos da geodiversidade e a biodiversidade, combinados entre si, configuram diferentes ambientes físicos, que permitem uma análise quantitativa espacial, de riqueza e abundância. Este trabalho objetiva apontar os principais aspectos convergentes entre a geodiversidade e a biodiversidade, atentando-se para as relações amostrais em cada caso, distribuição espacial, riqueza de diversidade e a relação entre índice de geodiversidade e patrimônio geológico. Ao estabelecer linhas gerais sobre a interpretação quantitativa da geodiversidade e a biodiversidade, percebe-se que ambas utilizam um recorte espacial pré-definido. A biodiversidade geralmente baseia-se em unidades amostrais de diversos tamanhos devido à impossibilidade de quantificação direta da diversidade em toda área. No caso da geodiversidade é preciso estabelecer uma escala máxima e mínima de avaliação, e, partindo dessa escala de referência, estabelecer uma análise da distribuição espacial dos elementos por meio da cartografia (mapas geológicos, pedológicos ou geomorfológicos) como ferramenta instrumental. A avaliação quantitativa da geodiversidade, cujos métodos ainda estão sendo avaliados, pode subsidiar uma melhor compreensão do ambiente físico, inclusive pode oferecer resultados para identificação e avaliação do patrimônio geológico, geomorfológico ou paleontológico. Entretanto, faz-se necessário saber que a diversidade de vida ou de elementos abióticos de um ambiente representa um grande complexo e portanto deve ser entendida além de um mero índice numérico que espacializa a diversidade de partes constituintes do todo. Palavras-Chave: geodiversidade; biodiversidade; quantificação AbstractThe geodiversity term has been used to attend the needs of geosciences researchers to refer the complex's physical landscape, covering the abiotic elements such as rocks, landforms, soils and rivers, for example, configured as an analogue to the biodiversity term. The various components of geodiversity and biodiversity, combined, make up different physical environments, which allow a quantitative analysis of space, wealth and abundance. This paper aims to identify the main aspects of convergence between the geodiversity and biodiversity, paying attention to the relationships sample in each case, spatial distribution, richness of diversity and the relationship between rate of geodiversity and geological heritage. By establishing general guidelines on the quantitative interpretation of geodiversity and biodiversity, it is clear that both use a pre-defined spatial area. Biodiversity is generally based on sampling units of several sizes due to the impossibility of direct quantification of diversity in all area. In the case of geodiversity is necessary to e...
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