Urban springs and geodiversity: historical rescue of landscape transformation and study of hydromorphic materials in the municipality of São Carlos (SP)

Abstract

The city of São Carlos/SP concentrates the largest portion of the urban perimeter in the sub-basin of the Monjolinho River, belonging to the Tietê-Jacaré hydrographic region (UGRHI 13), over geological units from the Mesozoic era (Jurassic and Cretaceous period) and transition to Cenozoic (Cretaceous to Tertiary period) in the Cuestas region of the Paraná Sedimentary Basin, with high outcrop of water bodies. Urban expansion in the municipality conditioned the occupation of environmentally fragile areas such as the banks of streams and springs. The objective of this research was the geoenvironmental analysis of the unconsolidated materials present in the headwaters of urban water bodies in São Carlos and their relationship with the outcrop of springs in the middle of the slope. About eight springs located in the headwaters of streams of urban water bodies in the municipality were analyzed through geoprocessing, soil sampling in the field and interviews with local residents. As a result, a relationship was found between the hydromorphic materials identified in the headwaters and the outcrop of mid-slope springs in areas with a high state of degradation of the physical environment. These materials are poorly studied in the region, with no detailed mapping or stratigraphic classification in the literature, highlighting the need for further studies of the municipality's geodiversity. The rescue of history with the population was important to keep the collective memory alive about the elements and values associated with geodiversity.