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Identificación, caracterización y valoración de geositios y sitios de la geodiversidad en Cunco, IX Región de la Araucanía: Una herramienta para la geoconservación y el desarrollo sustentable… _________________________________________________________________________

ABSTRACT

Geoconservation is an increasingly relevant topic for geoscientists and society in general, as the importance of access to representative elements of geodiversity is recognized. In this sense, the best in situ occurrences of these elements are called “geosites” or “geodiversity sites”. These sites can be used as a tool for the divulgation of earth sciences and to promote local development through geotourism. In this way, generating initiatives for geoconservation is considered a current need and a social duty as geoscientists. The main objective of this work is to identify, characterize and value geosites and geodiversity sites in the Cunco county, with the purpose of offering an alternative for geoconservation and sustainable development. For this, the methodology proposed by Brilha (2016) was used, capable of valuing sites according to their potential for use and risk of degradation. In Cunco county, 29 potential sites were identified, of which 20 were selected based on the results obtained. Among them, 11 correspond to geosites, defined by their high scientific value, while 9 of them correspond to geodiversity sites, presenting a high educational, cultural and/or geotourism value. Together, the 20 sites represent the 9 geological contexts identified in the study area, covering at least 300 ma of geological history. Additionally, 6 georutes are designed to support divulgation and geotourism activities. The selected methodology delivered satisfactory results, because most of them are in agreement with expectations, however, certain sites were relatively overvalued, while others were undervalued. Therefore, one of the recommendations made in this work indicates that this type of methodologies should be used as a guide and not as a definitive selector, because each territory has particularities that must be studied and identified properly. Thus, among the 20 sites in the inventory, 2 were added at the author's criteria, backed by their important cultural, ecological and landscape value. Finally, it is concluded that Cunco has an important record of geodiversity, strongly associated with cultural, historical and ecological elements, with the potential to contribute to the divulgation of geosciences and promote a sustainable local development, therefore, it is considered necessary and recommended, an eventual incorporation to the Kütralkura Geopark.

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