Marinhas

The Environmental Education Center, in Quinta do Paiva, in addition to being an asset in awareness-raising activities, education and environmental training, is a dynamic and innovative center concerned about the environment, where new methods are worked and enhanced. Based on training and the community clarification, this center encourages the development of a spirit of responsibility and citizenship towards the municipality's environmental sustainability. The permanent exhibition "Interactive Environment" is one of the main sources of the attraction of the center, which has a library equipped with several publications on the environment, an " Ecoteca", an auditorium with 70 seats and an activity room. In the outdoor spaced, there are workshops ("Verdinho" and "Caça-Sujões"), Pedagogical Vegetable Gardens, Municipal Garden, Biodiversity Trail, Composting Corner and Picnic Area.

In Abelheira we can see evidence of the cereal richness of this region. The old cylindrical windmills were built in granite and located on the hillside, where the prevailing winds would be put to good use. For this purpose, the top of the mill, called "hood", was movable and could be controlled by the "tail" of the mill - a rudder which forced the "hood" to rotate according to the direction of the wind - to take advantage of the latter's orientation. The mills had four triangular sails, rotating the inner gears, consisting of the cogwheel and cage gear which, in turn, would rotate the moving millstone. The movement on the fixed millstone would grind cereal into flour. This mechanism was set up to the top floor of the mill, whose access was made by a ladder, and the ground floor was destined for the work of cereal and flour. Another way to reduce the grinding process of cereal - flour used in food - was the use of the hydraulic force from streams. It is the case of Abelheira stream where many mills once rotated. the watermills were known as "copeiras" or "mountain watermills", alluding to the fact that hey took advantage of the hydraulic force. This hydraulic force was also used in the nearby Peralta brook for wood cutting machines.