Master Thesis presented by Maria José Quintela F. Castelo Branco, 1996

Abstract
Considering the importance and urgent need for the implementation of Environmental Education for the youth, the granting of a greater emphasis on this educational area in the official curricula is defended. The inclusion of a practical component in all the favoured areas would be a solution to integrate teaching in to society and in the environment.

In the particular case of geological teaching there are many localities which could be studied and prepared in such a way to enable teachers and students to develop and profit from interesting field lessons.

The Alvão Natural Park has been chosen as a working area, more specifically the Fisgas do Ermelo water falls. The study of some geological forrnations, within the granitoids and metasediments which display a major geomorphologic impact in the area has been promoted.

The Fisgas do Ermelo falls and their geological setting have been subject to a more detailed study, both on their geomorphological and structural aspects. For the evaluation of the importance of Fisgas a method of visual comparison of the magnitude of the water fall was chosen.

A proposal of equipment for the Information Centre planned in the Alvão Natural Park is put forward, to be sited at the location of Fojo, near Fisgas. Included within this project is the set-up of a display panel in the main viewing site of the water falls.

Finally two itineraries are presented with geointerpretative traverses for visitors with differing knowledge of geology a walking itinerary of Fisgas and a traverse-type across the geological formations of the Ordovician, from Fervença to Ermelo.