IGU Regional Conference, Kraków, Poland 18-22 August 2014

IGU 2014 Book of Abstracts IGU2014 – 0688

Protecting the Environmentally Protected Area of the Lagoa Santa Karst through Geotourism

Travassos L. 1, Evangelista V. 2, Varela I. 3 1Pontifical Catholic University of , Graduate Program in Geography 2Federal Center for Technological Education of Minas Gerais 3Newton Paiva College and Promove College, Law School

The State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, is approximately 586.528 sq km large. Out of this total, it is believed that about 29,000 sq km are composed by traditional karst areas developed on carbonates. The most evident problems one can find in karst regions are the inadequate disposal of waste, water contamination and exploitation, especially due to the increasing urbanization in the so called “North Vector” of the State’s capital, . This region hosts two State Parks and other Conservation Units created as an attempt to protect the karst landscape. Historically the cities near this region have been used as dormitory towns. Further north, various ranches, country houses for the weekend and rural hostels are set on karst terrains. The municipalities of Vespasiano, , , Lagoa Santa, Matozinhos, Funilandia and Prudente de Morais are within the 360 sq km Environmental Protected Area of the Lagoa Santa Karst. All these municipalities have been facing demographic growth and consequently generate the anthropogenic pressure over the karst. In order to spread better understanding of the importance of such geoecological systems, a work regarding education through geotourism was carried out in the Sumidouro State Park (Parque Estadual do Sumidouro - PESU). This Conservation Unit stands out on the national scenario for sheltering a significant karst system with valuable records of the history of the occupation of the Americas, for example. The range of values (scientific, cultural, aesthetic, economic, scientific and pedagogical ones) given to the Places of Geomorphological Interest led to the adoption of the proposed methodology of Pereira (2006), adapted and applied to the Portuguese karst by Forte (2008) and by Travassos (2010) to the Brazilian karst. These steps allowed the identification and characterization of 06 geosites with 10 Places of Geomorphological Interest. The results confirmed the importance of the geomorphological heritage of the Park and will allow the development of geoconservationist strategies such as the establishment of geotouristic trails and interpretative panels that should help promote, enhance and disseminate this important geological and cultural heritage.