Dynamics of development and variability of surface degradation in the subalpine and alpine zones (an example from the Velká Fatra Mts., Slovakia)

Lepeška, Tomáš

doi:10.1515/geo-2016-0056

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Our research has shown a constant expansion of the degraded zone along tourist footpaths in the alpine zone. Similar results were obtained for areas transformed by natural and anthropogenic processes in the subalpine and alpine zones in the Wielka Fatra Range in Slovakia (Lepeška 2016). In addition, work in Bieszczady National Park in Poland has shown a constant expansion of the degraded zone -this despite the use of various reinforcements along tourist footpaths.…”

Section: Footpath Identifiersupporting

confidence: 73%

“…The very unique characteristics of mountain areas and local determinants, especially bedrock resistance and magnitude of human impact, determine the magnitude of relief change in mountain areas (Leung and Marion 1996;Mihai et al 2009;Monz et al 2010a;Tomczyk 2011;Lepeška 2016;Apollo and Andreychouk 2020; Table 4 Location of analyzed tourist footpath sections and rate of growth of their zones of degradation in the years 1977-2009-2019 (location of footpath sections see Fig. 8).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Degradation of a protected mountain area by tourist traffic: case study of the Tatra National Park, Poland

et al. 2021

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Mountain protected areas are characterized by high biodiversity, which makes it a great challenge for managers to maintain a balance between their use and the stability of natural ecosystems. Maintaining that balance is particularly difficult in areas with high tourism pressure. The expected volume of tourist traffic should be considered at the planning stage of the tourist infrastructure development process. Insufficient capacity of tourist infrastructure can lead to environmental degradation, which is hard, or at times impossible, to repair. In our research, we identified patterns of tourist footpath and road functioning in an environmentally protected area with high volumes of tourist traffic. Data from geomorphologic mapping was analyzed in order to identify tourist footpath and road structures in the Tatra National Park (TNP). Fieldwork was conducted in several stages between 1995 and 2019. Orthophotomaps from the years 1977, 2009, 2017 and 2019 were used to identify and compare degraded zones along selected tourist footpaths. Degraded zones were defined as areas surrounding a footpath or tourist road with a mean width larger than or equal to 10 meters, with heavily damaged or completely removed vegetation and exposed, weathered cover, where geomorphic processes that would not take place under normal conditions are readily observable. The examined tourist footpaths and roads vary in terms of their morphometric parameters. Research has shown important differences between mean and maximum footpath width as well as maximum incision depth for the forest zone versus the subalpine and alpine zones. A lack of differences in these parameters was noted between the alpine and subalpine zones. Research has shown that an increase in the surface area of degraded zones found adjacent to tourist footpaths occurred in all the studied geo-ecological zones in the study period. However, the largest increase occurred atop wide ridgelines found in the alpine zone. Degraded zones may be an indication of exceeding the tourist carrying capacity of a mountain tourist area. Mass tourism in TNP contributes to the formation of degraded zones adjacent to footpaths, whose continuous evolution may lead to irreversible changes in local relief.

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Section: Footpath Identifiersupporting

confidence: 73%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Degradation of a protected mountain area by tourist traffic: case study of the Tatra National Park, Poland

et al. 2021

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“…Trigger zones in the Malá Fatra mountains, which have become the subject of research for several avalanche experts [77][78][79][80] have a slightly higher area (5.1 km 2 ) according to Žiak [56]. The fourth mountain range with an area of trigger zones at 5.2 km 2 is, according to Žiak [56], Vel'ká Fatra, which was subject of avalanche hazards research by several authors [81][82][83][84]. The Ďumbier area of the Low Tatras belongs to the second position in the overall classification of areas threatened by avalanche activity in terms of the extent of trigger zones (11 km 2 ), according to Žiak [56].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Avalanche Hazard Modelling within the Kráľova Hoľa Area in the Low Tatra Mountains in Slovakia

Košová

Molokáč

Cech

et al. 2022

Land

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The aim of this work is a comprehensive assessment of the avalanche risk within the Kráľova hoľa area in the Low Tatra Mountains in Slovakia by the modeling of trigger areas, and the simulation of avalanche movements and their maximum impact using GIS and the RAMMS simulation model. Within the environment of geographic information systems, we created a layer of trigger areas using a digital elevation model and a vector layer of a land cover as input data. This layer was added together with the digital elevation model to the RAMMS simulation model, where cartographic outputs were created, focusing on snow cover height, avalanche flow speed, and pressure exerted by a falling avalanche. Based on these documents, we were able to develop an updated map of the avalanche cadastre of the examined area. In the given territory, we mapped a range of trigger areas within an area of 2.6 km2 and the total range of avalanche run-outs within 14 interconnected areas. Of all the high mountains in Slovakia endangered by avalanches, this is the lowest range. The results are a suitable basis for the proper management and optimal use of the territory, which is part of Low Tatras National Park.

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“…While these variables have a comparatively low spatial resolution (30 arcsec, approx. 1 km), they may give a good indication of regional differences in shallow-landslide occurrence as they are representative of alpine processes often linked to the triggering of shallow landslides (Meusburger and Alewell, 2008;Wiegand and Geitner, 2010;Löbmann et al, 2020;Geitner et al, 2021). Specifics on the individual CHELSA variables used can be found in Karger and Zimmermann (2019).…”

Section: Explanatory Variablesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…precipitation events) and anthropogenic processes (e.g. land-use management) (Tasser et al, 2003;Meusburger and Alewell, 2008;Zweifel et al, 2019;Geitner et al, 2021;Lepeška, 2016). The most visible form of erosion in grassland soils showing bare soil areas can be categorised as shallow erosion (Geitner et al, 2021) (Fig.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating causal factors of shallow landslides in grassland regions of Switzerland

Zweifel

Samarin

Meusburger

et al. 2021

Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. Mountainous grassland slopes can be severely affected by soil erosion, among which shallow landslides are a crucial process, indicating instability of slopes. We determine the locations of shallow landslides across different sites to better understand regional differences and to identify their triggering causal factors. Ten sites across Switzerland located in the Alps (eight sites), in foothill regions (one site) and the Jura Mountains (one site) were selected for statistical evaluations. For the shallow-landslide inventory, we used aerial images (0.25 m) with a deep learning approach (U-Net) to map the locations of eroded sites. We used logistic regression with a group lasso variable selection method to identify important explanatory variables for predicting the mapped shallow landslides. The set of variables consists of traditional susceptibility modelling factors and climate-related factors to represent local as well as cross-regional conditions. This set of explanatory variables (predictors) are used to develop individual-site models (local evaluation) as well as an all-in-one model (cross-regional evaluation) using all shallow-landslide points simultaneously. While the local conditions of the 10 sites lead to different variable selections, consistently slope and aspect were selected as the essential explanatory variables of shallow-landslide susceptibility. Accuracy scores range between 70.2 % and 79.8 % for individual site models. The all-in-one model confirms these findings by selecting slope, aspect and roughness as the most important explanatory variables (accuracy = 72.3 %). Our findings suggest that traditional susceptibility variables describing geomorphological and geological conditions yield satisfactory results for all tested regions. However, for two sites with lower model accuracy, important processes may be under-represented with the available explanatory variables. The regression models for sites with an east–west-oriented valley axis performed slightly better than models for north–south-oriented valleys, which may be due to the influence of exposition-related processes. Additionally, model performance is higher for alpine sites, suggesting that core explanatory variables are understood for these areas.

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Dynamics of development and variability of surface degradation in the subalpine and alpine zones (an example from the Velká Fatra Mts., Slovakia)

Cited by 7 publications

References 29 publications

Degradation of a protected mountain area by tourist traffic: case study of the Tatra National Park, Poland

Degradation of a protected mountain area by tourist traffic: case study of the Tatra National Park, Poland

Avalanche Hazard Modelling within the Kráľova Hoľa Area in the Low Tatra Mountains in Slovakia

Investigating causal factors of shallow landslides in grassland regions of Switzerland

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