Concepts and terminology for the risk of degradation of geological heritage sites: fragility and natural vulnerability, a case study

Anthropic Threats to Geological Heritage: Characterization and Management: A Case Study in the Dinosaur Tracksites of La Rioja (Spain)

“…This approach shares a common principle with those developed by Fuertes-Gutiérrez and Fernández-Martínez (2010), de Lima et al (2010), and Vegas et al (2011), which is the separation of threats to geoheritage by means of their origin. The main advantage of this conception may be demonstrated by comparing the natural threats analyzed in García-Ortiz et al (2014) with the anthropic threats analyzed in the present manuscript: while degradations caused by both sources on geosites are sometimes very similar, management proposals and solutions to avoid or stop them are completely different.…”

“…This paper is focused on human threats to geoheritage. The theoretical basis for the analysis proposed derives from the conceptual framework developed by García-Ortiz et al (2014). This approach shares a common principle with those developed by Fuertes-Gutiérrez and Fernández-Martínez (2010), de Lima et al (2010), and Vegas et al (2011), which is the separation of threats to geoheritage by means of their origin.…”

“…According to García-Ortiz et al (2014), the assessment of a geosite's risk of degradation must consider four different terms: fragility and natural vulnerability for natural threats; anthropic vulnerability, and public use for anthropic threats (Fig. 2).…”

“…Consequently, it is necessary to establish a methodology for the conservation of geoheritage (i.e., geoconservation, see precise definition in Burek and Prosser 2008;Prosser 2013). Carcavilla (2012) and García-Ortiz et al (2014) discuss the different fields that should be developed for efficient geoconservation. Among them, both the identification of the threats affecting geoheritage and the assessment of its risk of degradation are included.…”

“…Additionally, as Gray (2004) introduces, the risk of degradation is also influenced by the public accessibility of a geosite. Considering these factors, García-Ortiz et al (2014) define three different terms to assess a geosite's sensitivity: fragility, natural vulnerability, and anthropic vulnerability. In addition, they also include the concept of public use, as both uses and infrastructure in a geosite and its territory would affect and modify the three previous parameters.…”