RT Journal Article
T1 The Potential of Permanent Gullies in Europe as Geomorphosites
A1 Zglobicki, Wojciech
A1 Poesen, Jean
A1 Cohen, Marianne
A1 Del Monte, Maurizio
A1 García Ruiz, José M.
A1 Ionita, Ion
A1 Niacsu, Lilian
A1 Machová, Zora
A1 Martín Duque, José Francisco
A1 Nadal Romero, Estela
A1 Pica, Alessia
A1 Rey, Freddy
A1 Solé Benet, Albert
A1 Stankoviansky, Miloš
A1 Stolz, Christian
A1 Torri, Dino
A1 Soms, Juris
A1 Vergari, Francesca
AB Geotourism is a useful way to educate societies in the field of geomorphology and related natural hazards. Geosites, including geomorphosites, represent the basis for the development of this type of tourism. This study describes 12 representative gully regions within nine European countries. The characteristics of 42 permanent gullies, gully systems, and badland landscapes are presented. Based on scientific values of the sites, educational lessons to be learned were identified that are mainly related to (i) gullies as a geological window, (ii) present-day geomorphological processes and (iii) stages of historical gully erosion reflecting past human–environment interactions. To evaluate possible education activities, a geotouristic assessment of the studied gullies and badlands was made, based on scientific, educational, functional and touristic indicators. This assessment demonstrates a large difference between the selected gully and badland sites, particularly with regard to functional and tourist values. The geotouristic potential of gullies (badlands) is the highest in Italy and Spain and the lowest in Romania and Latvia. In some countries, permanent gullies are not regarded as geotouristic attractions at all, while in others, they constitute a significant element of their tourism development strategy. In our opinion, all activities must be part of a broader strategy for the development of geotourism in gully and badland regions, for example, gullies may be included as geosites within existing or planned geoparks.
PB Springer
SN 1867-2477, ESSN: 1867-2485
YR 2019
FD 2019-06
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/13382
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/13382
LA eng
NO Comunidad de Madrid
NO Slovak Research and Development Agency
DS Docta Complutense
RD 30 abr 2024