Wednesday, 29 August 2007
3.PS-78
Geoenvironments in the vicinity of Arctowski Station, Admiralty Bay, King George Island, Antarctica: vulnerability and valuation
Carlos Ernesto G. R. Schaefer1, Rogério Mercandelle Santana1, Maria Lúcia Calijuri2, Felipe Nogueira Bello Simas3, Márcio Rocha Francelino4, and Elpídio Inácio Fernandes Filho1. (1) Departamento de Solos, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Av. PH Rolfs s/n, Viçosa, Brazil, (2) Departamento de Engenharia Civil, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Av. PH Rolfs s/n, Viçosa, Brazil, (3) Centro Universitário de Caratinga, BR-116, KM-526, Caratinga, Brazil, (4) Instituto de Florestas, Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, BR 465 km 7, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
The use of a geographic information system (GIS) allows the mapping and quantification of biotic and physical features of importance to the environmental planning of Antarctic areas. In this paper we examine the geoenvironments of Arctowski Station vicinity (Admiralty bay, Maritime Antartica), by means of a photointerpretation of a ortomosaic at 1:6000 scale, produced by non-conventional aerial photographs obtained by the Cryosols project, aiming to undertake a preliminary environmental valuation and vulnerability assessment of the area. The geoenvironments were classified and ranked according with their biological valuation and vulnerability (fragility), mapping 20 units covering an approximate 150 ha . The most fragile geoenvrionmental units were penguin rookeries and various vegetation covers, very prone to degradation by trampling and human perturbations. The relationships between each geoenvironment were also explored, emphasizing the ecological aspects and their valuation. There, ornithogenic input is an important factor favoring the vegetation development.