Fernando Morante

• PhD
• Professor (Full) at Escuela Superior Politecnica del Litoral

Wildfires are affecting natural ecosystems worldwide, causing economic and human losses and exacerbated by climate change. Models of fire severity and fire susceptibility are crucial tools for fire monitoring. This case study analyses a fire event on 3 September 2019 in Vilcabamba parish, Loja province, Ecuador. This article aims to assess the seve...

Water Sowing and Harvesting (WS&H) is an ancestral knowledge widely used as a sustainable technique in water management. This study aims to analyse the importance, promotion, and cultural heritage of WS&H techniques through a literature review in Ecuador, considering applications of ancestral techniques by region (coastal, Andean and insular) with...

Water is an essential element for agricultural sustainability. In volcanic islands, freshwater sources are limited, challenging the local farming water supply. Rainfall dependence in the Galapagos Islands limits continuous agriculture, and despite using natural water sources, their irrigation quality is little known. This study aimed to carry out a...

This study proposes a semi-quantitative methodology for assessing the quality of the UNESCO Global Geopark (UGGp) websites. The study was based on mixed indicators (binary and ordinal) which were grouped into five dimensions (presentation, content, interactivity, usability, and special UNESCO information) and combined with multivariate assessment u...

Geosites represent important elements of geoheritage for promoting geotourism sustainable practices aimed at education and conservation. The Santa Elena Peninsula Geopark Project has several locations with geological, cultural and historical richness and the potential for geosites and tourist development. However, these places lack infrastructures...

In the American continent, the movement of tectonic plates causes seismic activity that generates earthquakes. Some countries of America are located on the western fringe of the Pacific Ring of Fire, which involves several tectonic plates, such as Nazca, Cocos, and North American, among others. This study aims to analyse the scientific production o...

The food security of most rural sectors depends on traditional agricultural practices. Geomatics tools contribute to traditional agricultural practices through Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in smart agriculture, agricultural mapping and improving sustainable agricultural production. The study’s objective is to explore the application of UAVs in a...

Coastal zones, with their significant geodiversity, are vital areas for geotourism. Effective management is crucial to harness the geological interest of these sites as geotourism resources while ensuring their conservation. Manabí Province is one of the most representative regions along the Ecuadorian coast due to its beaches and coastal cliffs, o...

Stability problems in rock masses are one of the main causes of subsidence events in underground mining areas. Zaruma, in the South of Ecuador, is characterised by mineral wealth, in which 65% of the population depends directly on artisanal mining activity. However, mineral extraction, without technical considerations and in many cases illegal, has...

Floods generated by rain cause significant economic and human losses. The campus of the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) has a drainage system that conducts stormwater to two discharge points outside the campus. The system works effectively at the macro-drainage level. However, a very crowded area is deficient at the micro-drainage...

The present study aims to elaborate a hydrogeological characterisation in the Water Sowing and Harvesting context. The study is focused on rural parishes in the Ecuadorian Andes that, despite their proximity to snow sources (Chimborazo glaciers), need more supply of this resource, to satisfy the demand of a population of 70,466 inhabitants. The stu...

The evaluation of geosites is an essential part of conserving the geodiversity and biodiversity of an ecosystem, as well as safeguarding the cultural, geological, environmental, and landscape wealth that a highly recognized geographical area possesses. In this context, Guayaquil, the pearl of the Pacific, is a city that registers, in its history an...

The north-central sector of the Santa Elena province has coastal aquifers that their communities have exploited due to water scarcity. The study area comprises the lower part of the Hondo River micro-watershed in the 'La Aguadita' commune. The sector's inhabitants do not have access to drinking water or sewage; the supply is given by cistern tanks...

Landslide occurrence has become increasingly influenced by human activities. Accordingly, changing land use and land cover (LULC) is an important conditioning factor in landslide susceptibility models. We present a bibliometric analysis and review of how LULC was explored in the context of landslide susceptibility in 536 scientific articles from 20...

Landslide occurrence has become increasingly influenced by human activities. Accordingly, land use and land cover (LULC) is an important conditioning factor in landslide susceptibility models. In this article, we present a bibliometric analysis and review of how LULC was explored in the context of landslide susceptibility in 536 scientific articles...

The purpose of this work is to evaluate the Canoa cliff-beach system (Ecuador) as a site of geotourism interest. The work consisted of three phases: i) geomorphological characterization and the analysis of the influence that the earthquake of 16th April 2016 may have had on the different erosion and deposition forms, ii) semi-quantitative evaluatio...

Landslides, earthquakes, and other natural events can change the landscape and generate human and economic losses, affecting transportation and public service infrastructure. In every geotechnical project, the investigation phase plays a fundamental role in reducing the risk of occurrence and mitigating catastrophes. As a result, governments have c...

Zaruma-Portovelo mining district (Ecuador) is an area characterised by its geological, natural, and cultural wealth with potential for geotourism development as an alternative to improve the inhabitants’ quality of life. This study aims to assess the evolution of the global geological interest of the Zaruma Urcu Hill (ZUH) geosite in the case of co...

Groundwater is essential in the management of water resources globally. The water quality of aquifers is affected by climate change and population growth, aspects that can be addressed with stable isotope analysis. This study aims to carry out an analysis of the scientific information related to groundwater and stable isotopes (GSI) using scientifi...

Alumni tracking studies at the local, regional and global levels provide quality and efficiency measurement parameters in higher education institutions and project improvements in the quality of professionals. However, there is a gap between alumni tracking and the measurement of career success, influencing the academic offer of careers relevant to...

Water supply is strategic for the development of society. The water distribution in nature follows patterns linked to geographic and territorial issues. Climate fluctuations aggravate shortage problems in semi-arid regions. This study aims to develop a systematic review of research on water scarcity in semi-arid areas through bibliometric methods t...

Biodiversity is an essential component of nature, relegating the aspects of geodiversity, which provides geological and landscape variety to a territory. However, the importance of geodiversity and its social, economic, educational, scientific, and technological impact on a region, are not well understood. This article measures the geoheritage valu...

Floods can be caused by heavy rainfall and the consequent overflow of rivers, causing low-lying areas to be affected. Populated regions close to riverbeds are the sectors most affected by these disasters, which requires modelling studies to generate different scenarios. The work focuses on the bibliometric analysis of the search for topics such as...

Wastewater collection, transport, and treatment systems are essential to ensure human and environmental well-being. The Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL), has been implementing various sanitary sewerage systems; however, population growth has given rise to discussion on the installed capacity versus the necessary capacity for the fut...

Mineral resource exploitation is one of the activities that contribute to economic growth and the development of society. Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is one of these activities. Unfortunately, there is no clear consensus to define ASM. However, its importance is relevant in that it represents, in some cases, the only employment alternati...

Refineries, fuel depots, airports and storage terminals commonly use fluid level measurement in storage tanks. Different fluid level measurement techniques and devices differ in the inaccuracy of measurement results, costs, and company needs. In addition, these measurements seek reliability of measurement data, immediate response times, control in...

Georesources comprise spaces of relevant geological value with the potential to be used and managed as a resource. Therefore, georesources are an essential development factor in the world, mainly oriented to their rational use to improve the quality of life of the surrounding population. This work aims to analyze the main applications, conservation...

For more than 20 years, problems related to erosive processes and landslides have been detected on Las Cabras hill in Duran, Ecuador. Las Cabras hill has a stability problem due to its sub-vertical slopes (north zone) due to rockfalls, slopes with a favourable slope to landslide (south zone) and two anthropic factors (houses in inappropriate places...

The development of geoeducation generates a link between people, landscapes, and their culture by recognising the geological potential around geosites and their conservation. Geosites have important scientific value and constitute a way of generating learning tools for the development of geoeducation. The city of Guayaquil, the main port of Ecuador...

Worldwide, forest fires exert effects on natural ecosystems, contributing to economic/human losses, health effects, and climate change. Spectral indices are an essential tool for monitoring and analyzing forest fires. These indices make it possible to evaluate the affected areas and help mitigate possible future events and reduce damage. The case s...

Cajas National Park (CNP), located in southern Ecuador, comprises an area of high natural, scientific and cultural value with wide recognition worldwide. This national park has a large number of elements that, as a whole, constitute a relevant geological heritage. However, this geological heritage requires an enhancement that complements the import...

The accelerated growth of the population in recent years presents, as a great consequence, a significant increase in wastewater, which, on many occasions, is not discharged properly. This work aims to design a sewerage and wastewater treatment system in Las Mercedes commune in southern Ecuador based on geological, topographic, hydrological, geochem...

Ore petrography through optical microscopy and electron microprobe analysis (EMPA) can be applied to the characterization of ore deposits, allowing accurate and representative information on the evolutionary sequences of mineral phases (paragenesis). In this studywork mineralogical and petrographical characteristics of three veins (Vizcaya, Octubri...

The scientific community has a growing interest in understanding the interaction of the human-water system in water resource models. In Santa Elena (Ecuador), Valdivia, San Pedro, Sinchal, Barcelona and Carrizal communities are located in a semi-arid area, making the water supply a critical problem for local communities. In addition to the climatic...

A reservoir behaviour's characterisation is determined by analysing the fluids' physical properties, reported in Pressure, Volume and Temperature (PVT) tests. These tests are performed in the laboratory or are estimated by mathematical correlations with the well's basic properties. The eastern basin of Ecuador is considered a hydrocarbon zone, and...

Landslides are generated by natural causes and by human action, causing various geomorphological changes as well as physical and socioeconomic loss of the environment and human life. The study, characterization and implementation of techniques are essential to reduce land vulnerability, different socioeconomic sector susceptibility and actions to g...

Universities have the mission to serve society by being pragmatic, diverse, and multidisciplinary. Similar to society in general, these centers have a common challenge: finding a way to articulate projects that favor the demands and needs of vulnerable rural sectors. In this case, the community-university partnership is based on the interaction of...

Research on natural zeolites (NZ) has increased over the years, showing potential in different areas, and many of them involve cation exchange (CE), considered one of the essential properties of NZ. This work aims to identify studies’ cognitive structure based on the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of NZ through bibliometric analysis to evaluate sci...

Manglaralto parish communities are supplied with drinking water extracted from shallow aquifers (associated with alluvial terraces) recharged by seasonal rivers. The companies responsible for extracting and distributing water are the Manglaralto Regional Drinking Water Administration Board (JAAPMAN, for its acronym in Spanish) and Olon Regional Boa...

Society faces a significant problem in regards to the spread of harmful products in the environment, primarily caused by accelerated growth and resource consumption. Consequently, there is a need for materials to be processed in less harmful ways and to remedy the contaminated sources they generate. Microporous materials have been studied for a lon...

The Zaruma-Portovelo mining district in Ecuador, and in particular, Portovelo City, is home to the oldest mining museum in the country. This museum, named Museo Mineralógico Magner Turner (MMMT in Spanish), is a centre that reflects, through its collections, the history and culture of this territory. This work aimed to evaluate the MMMT as a possib...

Featured Application The application of a methodology for evaluating susceptibility to landslides and landslides, based on the experience of several researchers, has allowed the generation of a susceptibility map. This susceptibility map presents a correlation with the geophysical data, drilling and pits, which validates the application of the meth...

Land cover is an important descriptor of the earth’s terrestrial surface. It is also crucial to determine the biophysical processes in global environmental change. Land-use change showcases the management of the land while revealing what motivated the alteration of the land cover. The type of land use can represent local economic and social benefit...

Geodiversity and geological heritage are considered to be parallel and closely related concepts of biodiversity and biological heritage. Biodiversity is based and exists on the geodiversity of a territory. In the same way, mining activity and mining heritage are distinguished as contributing to social and economic development. The mining heritage i...

The inventory and assessment of a geosite in a territory provides a sound basis for the protection and use of its geological heritage. This article aims to evaluate the most relevant geosites in the province of Chimborazo (Ecuador), applying the Spanish Inventory of Sites of Geological Interest (IELIG, in Spanish) method, and proposing alternatives...

This research focuses on providing a solution to rural sectors' problems regarding solid waste management and final disposal. It considered the Sanitary Landfill (SL) technical-environmental viability for rural communities in the north of Santa Elena-Ecuador. The objective is to propose a methodology for evaluating a sanitary landfill's technical-e...

Modeling an aquifer provides significant advantages when evaluating and estimating the water resource for its sustainable use. This study focuses on the rural parish Manglaralto, a semi-arid area with a shortage of water, and without supply service by the public network. Still, it has a great demand for supply by the local and floating population (...

In the last decade, in the mining district of Zaruma-Portovelo, there has been significant land subsidence related to uncontrolled mining activity. The purpose of this work was to carry out a surface and underground geomechanical characterization of a mining sector north of the city of Zaruma that allows the definition of potentially unstable areas...

Coastal aquifers are strategic and fundamental in the development of touristic areas. The coastal aquifer within the Manglaralto River Basin in Ecuador is essential, as it is the only source of water supply for a large part of the northern part of the Santa Elena province. It is a semi-arid region where high volumes of water are pumped from the aqu...

Coastal aquifers are part of the natural resources contributing to local development and promote resilience in the most vulnerable communities near the sea. Manglaralto, an Ecuadorian coastal parish, is affected by water resource scarcity. The increase in salinity and deterioration of the water quality is generated by the local and floating populat...

In the north of the province of the Santa Elena province (Ecuador), the important rivers in the area are seasonal, that is, the surface water is intermittent without supplying the population throughout the year. Consequently, the coastal aquifers are managed and exploited by the communes of the sector through the Water Boards. The "Regional Board o...

The relevant geomorphological characteristics of territory represent an essential part of its natural heritage. They are also an asset to be exploited for stimulating socioeconomic development. The "Ruta Escondida" in Ecuador constitutes a historical place full of culture and landscapes that have been shaped over time by geological and geomorpholog...

Rockfall is one of the main phenomena in mountainous environments due to its fast and high speed of movement, its unpredictability, and, therefore, the difficulty of identifying signs of instability and detachment of the blocks. Compared to other types of sliding, the proportion of rockfall research is smaller and sometimes little known, but, in th...

Resilience has several meanings, among them the ability to overcome difficulty and return to the state of providing service, even if the initial conditions change. Assessing resilience in an ecosystem, or any system, requires a concise methodology with standard variables and parameters. The current challenge presented by coastal areas is focused on...

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of academic research on volcanic geomorphology, through the use of bibliometric analysis and bibliographic visualization maps for the discernment of its growing interest by the academy in the last 30 years. It is sustained on the publications indexed in the Scopus database between 1956 and 2019,...

Geodiversity treaties have multiplied and given rise to geological heritage as a singular value of protection and preservation for territories. The Puyango Petrified Forest (PPF) is a recognized Ecuadorian reserve, which was declared a National Heritage Treasure. It has an area of 2659 hectares, and it is located in the south of Ecuador, between th...