Anthropogenic landform development and sedimentation in the Anthropocene: accumulation rates and environmental changes in mining areas of the middle Capivari River Basin (São Paulo, Brazil)

• Grant number: 24/16451-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: April 01, 2025
• End date: March 31, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Geosciences - Physical Geography
• Principal Investigator: Cenira Maria Lupinacci
• Grantee: Rodrigo Agostinho Silva de Campos
• Host Institution: Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas (IGCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In the Anthropocene, human activities-particularly urban expansion, agriculture, and mining-significantly impact geomorphology by altering landforms and disrupting the natural dynamics of environmental systems (Christofoletti, 1979; Wilkinson, 2005). Mining is especially disruptive to physical systems, reshaping geomorphic units and destabilizing processes of denudation and sedimentation (Marsh, 1865; Paschoal, 2014). This study aims to identify and analyze shifts in sedimentation dynamics associated with human activity in the middle basin of the Capivari River (São Paulo, Brazil), with a specific focus on mining. To achieve this, detailed geomorphological and land-use mapping at a 1:10,000 scale will be conducted for the years 2004, 2010, and 2022 to trace anthropogenic features and understand land-use changes over time. Sedimentation rates will be estimated using Pb-210 dating of riverbed cores, while granulometric and organic composition analyses will assess sediment quality. The findings are expected to reveal changes in sedimentation and geomorphic patterns over time, highlighting the impacts of human activities-particularly mining-on environmental dynamics.