The increasing interest in geotourism has prompted the need for quantitative assessments of geosites as a fundamental step in the application of geoconservation strategies, in order to assure sustainable planning, management and use of natural resources. The improvement of methodologies used to evaluate geosites dictates the revision of previous assessments on a regular basis. Santa Maria Island in the Azores Archipelago is renowned for its palaeontological heritage. Herein, we present the results of a re-evaluation of 17 fossiliferous geosites, based on an updated methodology in which four main independent criteria are considered: (1) scientific value; (2) educational value; (3) touristic value; and (4) degradation risk. These new results were compared with a previous evaluation of the same geosites, based on the Q-value. Our results show that an evaluation of the fossiliferous geosites based on independent criteria is more suitable, especially for political and economic stakeholders. The study of these geosites also permitted the development of high-quality promotional products for the Regional Government of the Azores, as in the case of the “House of the Fossils” museum, the “Fossils Route” and the newly formed “Santa Maria PalaeoPark,” making this island a good example of a successful joint venture between science, political decision-makers, geoconservation management strategies, sustainable tourism and education.

Constructed wetlands are considered integrated ecosystems and a promising wastewater treatment option, relying on vegetation, soils, and microbial assemblages. The potential dispersal of effluents from domestic septic systems, the application of dairy farm effluents containing excessive nutrients and pathogens into pastures, and undertreated effluent discharge in coastal areas are some of the threats to water quality in the Azores. Constructed wetlands could be used in the Azores to protect and preserve the quality of drinking water sources and bathing waters. However, the most used plant species in other regions are considered as introduced in the Azores, where a considerable number of invasive plants and weeds are already present. Here, we present a review of the plant taxa already present in the Azorean flora with the potential to be used in constructed wetland systems, based on a literature review, and on the assessment of nine criteria. We evaluated 73 taxa, including mostly Cyperaceae, Poaceae and Juncaceae, showing that, although some of the top-ranking species were considered potentially noxious, several native and some naturalized taxa could be used for wastewater treatment. This work supports the implementation of constructed wetlands in the Azores, while minimizing the risk of new invasions.