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.

O mapeamento geomorfológico do estado do Paraná procurou seguir em grande parte a metodologia adotada por Ross (1977) para o estado de São Paulo, a fim de dar seqüência a uma sistematização de uma cartografia geomorfológica regional. A escala adotada, 1: 250000, permitiu a utilização dos três primeiros taxons, ou seja, representação cartográfica das Unidades Morfoestruturais, Unidades Morfoesculturais e Sub-unidades Morfoesculturais. No 1º taxon foram identificadas as unidades morfoestruturais: Cinturão Orogênico do Atlântico; Bacia Sedimentar do Paraná e Bacias Sedimentares Cenozóicas e Depressões Tectônicas. No 2º taxon foram identificadas as unidades morfoesculturais: Serra do Mar e Morros Isolados e Primeiro Planalto Paranaense; Segundo Planalto e Terceiro Planalto; Planície Litorânea e Flúvio-Marinhas e Planícies Fluviais. No 3º taxon foram mapeadas cinqüenta subunidades morfoesculturais. Este trabalho objetiva atender a demanda por uma base geomorfológica sistemática para informar ao sistema de planejamento do Estado do Paraná, bem como aos estudos de geologia, zoneamento ecológico-econômico e recursos hídricos, entre outros.

The Serra do Mar escarpment, located along the southeastern coast of Brazil, is a high-elevation passive margin escarpment. This escarpment evolved from the denudation of granites, migmatites and gneisses. The granites outcrop in the form of a ridge along the escarpment crest, due to its differential erosion ('sugarloaf' hills) from the surrounding lithologies. Several studies suggest that the passive margin escarpments are actively retreating toward the interior of the continent. However, no prior study has calculated the long-term denudation rates of Serra do Mar to test this hypothesis. In this study, we measured the in situ-produced 10 Be concentration in fluvial sediments to quantify the catchment-wide long-term denudation rates of the Serra do Mar escarpment in southern Brazil. We sampled the fluvial sediments from ten watersheds that drain both sides of the escarpment. The average long-term denudation rate of the oceanic side is between 2.1-and 2.6-fold higher than the rate of the continental side: 26.04 ± 1.88 mm ka -1 (integrating over between 15.8 ka -1 and 46.6 ka -1 ) and 11.10 ± 0.37 mm ka -1 (integrating over between 52.9 ka -1 and 85.4 ka -1 ), respectively. These rates indicate that the coastal base level is controlling the escarpment retreat toward the continental high lands, which is consistent with observations made at other high-elevation passive margins around the globe. The results also demonstrate the differential erosion along the Serra do Mar escarpment in southern Brazil during the Quaternary, where drainages over granites had lower average denudation rates in comparison with those over migmatites and gneisses.Moreover, the results demonstrate that the ocean-facing catchments have been eroded more intensely than those facing the continent. The results also reveal that drainage over the granites decreases the average denudation rates of the ocean-facing catchments and the 'sugarloaf' hills therefore are natural barriers that slowly retreat once they are exhumed.

No abstract

Artigo recebido em 29/12/2011 e aceito para publicação em 12/04/2012 RESUMO:A geomorfologia utiliza a identificação das formas de relevo, por meio de estudo de sua origem, estrutura, natureza das rochas, clima e dos fatores endógenos e exógenos responsáveis pelo modelado ou formação de determinados elementos da superfície terrestre. Neste sentido, estabeleceu-se uma proposta de compartimentação geomorfológica da bacia hidrográfica do Rio Itu. Como base metodológica do trabalho, utilizou-se a proposta de Ross (1990Ross ( , 1992, os mapas e as discussões apresentadas por Robaina et. al (2010) ABSTRACT:The geomorphology is used to identify the forms of relief, through a study of its origin, structure, nature of the rocks, and climate of endogenous and exogenous factors responsible for the formation of patterned or certain elements of the earth's surface. In this sense, it was established a proposal for compartmentation the geomorphological Itu River basin. As a methodological basis of the work, we used the proposed Ross (1990Ross ( , 1992, maps and discussions presented by Robaina et. al (2010) Ibicuí River basin. In mapping used topographic maps 1:50.000, satellite images and fieldwork. There were certain attributes of the