United States

Protected areas of geoheritage which are populated are all faced with challenge of keeping balance between preserving the natural environment and human interventions for living, economic activities and safety. Dovžan Gorge Natural Monument is one of the most interesting geological sites in Slovenia. With the longest cross-section of fossil-rich Upper Paleozoic rocks exposed it is also one of more significant ones in the Southern Alps. The exposed section of 300–250 million years old rocks enables the study of the paleoenvironmental evolution of the depositional setting and the paleobiologic evolution of several fossil genera (Novak et al., 2019). As such it has high scientific as well as historical and educational value. Geological as well as the geomorphic phenomena were main reasons to protect the area as a natural monument in 1988 (Novak &amp; Mrak, 2020). The area is part of the Karavanke mountain range and prone to various natural hazards. In historical sources many extreme weather events are recorded. The most recent one occurred in the night of 29-30 October 2018. Extreme rainfall has initiated torrent flows in the Tržiška Bistrica river basin that caused significant changes in Dovžan Gorge particularly in the riverbed. It also caused material damage on the infrastructure. Historical records reveal similar events that have taken place before and similar response to them (Novak &amp; Mrak, 2019). This allows the assessment of the human perception of natural disasters and historical memory of them. The October 2018 event opened new aspects of nature protection and intensive economically controlled management of natural resources, in this case primarily forest. In the 2 following years interventions on slopes and in riverbed with heavy construction works severely intrude into natural environment and processes. The Dovžan Gorge Natural Monument has thus proven to be an excellent polygon for the study of natural processes and anthropogenic impacts. It therefore serves as a case study for balancing nature conservation, human activities and geohazard mitigation in geoheritage sites. The research is co-funded by the Slovenian National Committee of UNESCO, Internat. Geoscience Prog., grant No. C3330-21-456004, and its project IGCP 692 - Geoheritage for Geohazard Resilience

SGI 2021

Tackling geohazard in populated geoheritage sites

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L'Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e Geofisica Sperimentale - OGS e il Dipartimento di Matematica e Geoscienze dell'Università di Trieste sono orgogliosi di ospitare il 90° Congresso della Società Geologica Italiana a Trieste dal 14 al 16 settembre 2021. La modalità del congresso è interamente online.

Con il motto "Geologia senza frontiere" questo evento mira a promuovere le Scienze della Terra come disciplina scientifica proiettata nel futuro, oltre i confini geografici, politici e disciplinari, per comprendere meglio l'interno del Pianeta Terra e la struttura del sottosuolo, difendere la società da pericolosi eventi geologici, comprendere meglio la variabilità climatica, pianificare l'utilizzo delle georisorse in modo etico e nel rispetto dell'ambiente.


**Please note, times listed in the SCHEDULE tab (calendar icon) reflect YOUR LOCAL TIME ZONE. The main timezone for this conference will be Central European Summer Time.**

The National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics - OGS and the Department of Mathematics and Geosciences of the University of Trieste are proud to host the 90th Congress of the Italian Geological Society in Trieste on 14-16 September 2021.  The Congress will be held entirely online.

With the motto "Geology Without Borders" this event aims to promote Earth Sciences as a scientific discipline projected into the future, beyond geographical, political and disciplinary boundaries, to better understand the interior of Planet Earth and the structure of the subsurface, defend society from dangerous geological events, better understand climatic variability, plan the use of geo-resources in an ethical way and respecting the environment.


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Earth Sciences should be understood not only as necessary for a better understanding of the interior of the planet Earth, but also as a defense of society from dangerous geological events, for the understanding of climatic variations, for the planning and use of georesources in a ethical and respecting and protecting the environment.

Protected areas of geoheritage which are populated are all faced with challenge of keeping balance between preserving the natural environment and human interventions for living, economic activities and safety. Dovžan Gorge Natural Monument is one of the most interesting geological sites in Slovenia. With the longest cross-section of fossil-rich Upper Paleozoic rocks exposed it is also one of more significant ones in the Southern Alps. The exposed section of 300–250 million years old rocks enables the study of the paleoenvironmental evolution of the depositional setting and the paleobiologic evolution of several fossil genera (Novak et al., 2019). As such it has high scientific as well as historical and educational value. Geological as well as the geomorphic phenomena were main reasons to protect the area as a natural monument in 1988 (Novak & Mrak, 2020). The area is part of the Karavanke mountain range and prone to various natural hazards. In historical sources many extreme weather events are recorded. The most recent one occurred in the night of 29-30 October 2018. Extreme rainfall has initiated torrent flows in the Tržiška Bistrica river basin that caused significant changes in Dovžan Gorge particularly in the riverbed. It also caused material damage on the infrastructure. Historical records reveal similar events that have taken place before and similar response to them (Novak & Mrak, 2019). This allows the assessment of the human perception of natural disasters and historical memory of them. The October 2018 event opened new aspects of nature protection and intensive economically controlled management of natural resources, in this case primarily forest. In the 2 following years interventions on slopes and in riverbed with heavy construction works severely intrude into natural environment and processes. The Dovžan Gorge Natural Monument has thus proven to be an excellent polygon for the study of natural processes and anthropogenic impacts. It therefore serves as a case study for balancing nature conservation, human activities and geohazard mitigation in geoheritage sites. The research is co-funded by the Slovenian National Committee of UNESCO, Internat. Geoscience Prog., grant No. C3330-21-456004, and its project IGCP 692 - Geoheritage for Geohazard Resilience

poster

The combination of new technologies in data collection, storage, modelling and visualization has recently provided the tools to turn 2D geologic mapping into 3D, which is useful to optimize information, facilitating immediate understanding of geologic architecture even for non-experts. In this perspective, with the aim to promote also geotourism in the Regional Reserve of Montalbano Jonico Badlands (MT, Italy), we are implementing a 3D geological map, from a 2D geological map, at 1:5.000 scale. The Quaternary marine clayey hillslopes of the Reserve belong to the inner margin of the Bradanic Through and show typical landforms giving rise to a stunning badland landscape. These forms derive from erosion, due to water washout, in clay-rich lithologies slopes, characterized by a high drainage density, scarce vegetation cover and high energy relief. In the past thirty years, several studies allowed to highlight, exposed in the badlands of the Reserve, one of the best representative marine sedimentary section outcropping on the Earth, offering the opportunity to study and analyze in detail the stratigraphical constraints close to the Lower – Middle Pleistocene boundary and the paleoclimatic evolution during the Marine Isotope Stage 19 interglacial stage (e.g. Marino et al., 2020, and references therein). The 3D geological model was built using the software Move, a powerful platform that allowed to combine a DEM 5x5m resolution, 2D large scale geological map, field data acquired with mobile/tablet and any kind of survey data, as geologic cross-sections and wells logs. The use of three-dimensional cartography makes much easier to visualise how the proposed geo-itinerary develops between the geological and geomorphological features of the area. As a simple and diverse output, 3D cartography could help to promote a broader communication of the scientific topics and the awareness of the importance of the geological heritage of this area for cultural, educational and other local sustainable activities, sharing it with the stakeholders.

Three-dimensional geological cartography for geotourism: the Regional Reserve of Montalbano Jonico

The Dolomites are recognized as a UNESCO natural World Heritage site since 2009. The Geological heritage operating network of the UNESCO Dolomites Foundation (www.dolomitiunesco.info) is a team of provincial/regional administrations (Provincia autonoma di Bolzano, Provincia autonoma di Trento, Provincia di Belluno, Regione del Veneto, Regione autonoma Friuli Venezia Giulia), the MUSE of Trento, the Parco Naturale Adamello Brenta Geopark, the Parco Naturale Paneveggio Pale di San Martino, and academic departments (University of Ferrara and University of Padova) representatives. With specific expertise in geology and geomorphology, this network is devoted to conservation, communication and enhancement of all the geological aspects of the property, implementing both long-term planning and immediate practical actions. Currently active projects are devoted to enhance the incredible geological legacy to the Dolomites, which is also the origin of the landscape we can see today: (i) geological map of the UNESCO Dolomites (1:150.000 scale); (ii) Dolomites World Heritage Geotrail (field guides for geo-tourists); (iii) Dolomites World Heritage Geotrail Immersive View (online spherical 360° image navigation of stunning geological landscapes from drone images); (iv)  identification and cataloguing (georeferenced inventory) of geological excellences; (v) degree awards and other initiatives on enhancement, conservation and research; (vi) geomorphological map of the Brenta Dolomites (in progress).

The UNESCO Dolomites geological heritage: present challenge and future opportunity

In this note we illustrate a joint project carried out by ISPRA and Monti Sibillini National Park focused on the 2016 Central Italy earthquakes surface faulting enhancement and protection along the Monte Vettore - Monte Bove fault system. The project aims at increasing public awareness to natural hazards within the territory of the park, and to keep the memory of the event through the enhancement of such highly scientific value sites. In fact, the coseismic ruptures induced along the Monte Vettore - Monte Bove fault system by the two main shocks (24 August and 30 October) represent the largest and most documented surface faulting example in Italy. Three areas have been identified along the Monte Vettore – Monte Bove system to be preserved and to be pointed out with the aim of showing and describe the most evident geological evidences of this geological event: at Colli Alti e Bassi, where the recent coseismic rupture is marked by a white stripe at the base of the fault plane, allowing to estimate the amount of displacement equal to about 60 cm; along the Cordone del Vettore fault scarp, where is possible to observe a total amount of displacement of about two meters high and along a gully in the southern slope of Monte Vettoretto. The project consists of a geological itinerary marked by ten viewpoints, where information boards illustrate surface faulting phenomena and some other ground effects induced by the 2016 earthquake. Two other introductive panels, in Visso and in Arquata del Tronto, invite the visitors to join the geological itinerary. Those interested in learning more in depth about the 2016 Central Italy earthquake, will be able to access directly from their smartphone to further multimedia web resources (i.e., videos and papers), through a QR code. The project comprehends also some protection works against weathering on the fault mirrors revealed by the 2016 earthquakes.

A project for the protection and enhancement of surface faulting effects induced by the 2016 Central Italy seismic sequence along the Monte Vettore – Monte Bove fault system

The heavy urbanized areas are characterized by the close relationship between Earth's processes and human activities, here the historical human presence and its industry modelled the landscape. Geosciences and Archaeology, sharing the space and time analysis of an area, analyze separately or in collaboration the one and the other element of this relationship. In collaboration case, geoarchaeology uses geoscience tecniques in the archaeological record analysis. Thus, geoarchaeology strongly supports the urban environmental analysis, especially in Mediterranean cities, characterized by thousands years of natural and artificial substrate stratification. Rome city is an emblematic case. In the context of the city urban geomorphological analysis, based on anthropic transformations reconstruction, objective of this work are the analysis of geoarchaeological literature about the city center, the data classification and the collection of informations about landscape anthropic transformations.This study focuses on the south est area of Rome historical centre, collecting papers about archaeological, geognostic and stratigraphic surveys, paleoenvironmental reconstructions, geomorphological and hydrogeological investigations. The collection of geoarchaeological scientific literature is systematized by scientific topic, area of interest, historical period, kind of data obtained for the landscape reconstruction. Anthropic transformations in the landscape results from the geoarchaeological literature analysis, some examples:

Geoarchaeology Role in the Urban Environmental Analysis: Rome's landscape anthropic transformations

The Apuan-Versilia plain (northwestern Tuscany) is a dynamic territory subject to continuous environmental evolution and characterized by a widespread archaeological heritage of considerable importance (Bini et al., 2013). In Versilia, tourism is mainly seaside with a concentrated flow in the summer with overcrowding problems (Marchi et al., 2021). However, the cultural and environmental visitor centers located in the immediate hinterland are still poorly known. The study of the environmental evolution (from prehistoric times to today, up to possible future scenarios) could be used as vector to enhance the cultural heritage of the Versilia area as a whole. This work wolud like to identify past palaegeographic scenarios by integrating data from different sources (archaeological, historical, cartographic, geological, environmental) into the GIS environment. These paleogeographic maps can be used to connect the various archeological and geological sites located throughout the territory and therefore increase their visibility and importance. This could increase of visits in cultural sites could be help on the sensibilization of the visiting and the citizens on the themes of the cultural heritage and climate change. In fact, the effects of climate change, including global warming and sea level rise, are particularly relevant for coastal areas (IPCC, 2018), such us the study area, where climate chanhge threat cultural and environmental heritage.

The use of paleogeographic reconstructions as a vector to increase the visibility of archaeological and geological heritage

“Il Cammino” of the Montefeltro's Duke is a cross-section of geological and human history in the Umbrian-Marchigiano Apennines that starting from Urbino, UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the cultural capital of the Italian Renaissance passes through woods, countryside, mountains, and villages to reach the medieval Gubbio where Federico the future Montefeltro's Duke was born. A Team of the University of Urbino made up of geologists, historians, archaeologists, sociologists, and economists, together with CAI (Club Alpino Italiano), which has provided a small but significant economic contribution (Terre Alte Research Fund 2021) proposes and develops a project to define this new way. It passes through places, such as the Furlo and Bottaccione Gorges, which are very famous not only among geologists. The geological history that starts from 200 My and reaches the present, crossing time and telling of mass extinctions, climate change, and much more is well exposed here and it is just waiting to be disclosed. The Gubbio - Urbino geological cross-section encloses all these stories, as well as the history of man and the culture which developed in these places. The great landscape charm resulting from the interaction between man and nature has provided the raw material for the main artists: Ariosto reports on Furlo when he describes the places of Orlando furioso; Torquato Tasso composes his Ode al Metauro; Raphael portraits the Candigliano valley in his paintings; Dante tells about Fonte Avellana on the slopes of Monte Catria in Divina Commedia. In addition to the tracing and survey of geo-touristic peculiarities carried out also involving students of different courses of the University of Urbino, tools for communication and spreading of knowledge have been developed, such as an informative geological map of paths and geological and geomorphological points of interest of the Furlo Nature Reserve, together with digital aids (BOT on Telegram: “furlo_geo_bot”). The "Cammini" are “a slow mobility network giving the country a veritable green infrastructure and offering the ability to travel throughout Italy on foot" (MIC - https://www.turismo.beniculturali.it/home-cammini-ditalia/atlante-dei-cammini /), cross regions that are often wrongly treated as marginal, to tell stories, which become a tool for sustainable and responsible tourism development. The project, which starts from a tale of the geological history that crosses the human one, aims to promote the territory by providing alternative chances for sustainable economic growth of entrepreneurial realities (touristic, artisanal, eno-gastronomic activities) often small but very rich in hospitality and typicality of the high lands of this part of the Apennines. Attention to the social impact of the path takes concrete form in the intention, right from the conceptual phase, careful to cross, together with geological and historical emergencies, even the wounds that have been inflicted on the landscape by non-sustainable development choices. At the same time, the engagement of a multidisciplinary team is aimed at developing tools and methods for detecting both the economic and social impact of the journey itself through mapping techniques of institutional and associational activities and realities that can contribute to the involvement and synergies at a territorial level. In this way we want also to enhance the synergies that can be created between this and other projects promoted by educational agencies, associations, and businesses in the area.

“Il Cammino” of the Montefeltro's Duke: a cross-section of geological and human history in the heart of Umbria-Marche Apennines

The distinctive geodiversity and geoheritage of our territory are unique assets which preservation is under constant threat. The unawareness of this problem increases the risk of losing important evidences about the evolution history of our planet and its living systems. For that reason, we aim to promote an integrated path between geoconservation, enhancement of natural assets and information dissemination in close cooperation with relevant Public Authorities. Within this framework we present an ongoing strategy of the Geological Survey of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region: following an initial geosite’s inventory, we moved toward the implementation of a specific local legislation including protection measures but mainly enhancement tools such as the institution of specific regional grants. A recent upgrade of the specific Regional Law 15/2016 concerning the "Protection and enhancement of regional geological and speleological heritage" recognized also the need to operate directly in the territory where geodiversity is worth to be enhanced. To support this, a local network, called "Geodiversity functional network” was created and the promoters were identified to coordinate the activities of the Local Authorities operating in the sector, through its competent Geological Survey. Above mentioned actions are supported by communication and dissemination activities for all age groups including primary and secondary schools, adult public as well as training of geological guides and creation of suitable geotrails, which are essential for the development of a sustainable geotourism. All this increases the value of the territory itself and stimulate, as an indirect spin-off, a general respect and constant protection of the environment, keeping in mind that, when something is understood and comprehend, it is easier to appreciate and consequently protect, so that it continues to exist.

Geoheritage and geodiversity: an integrated path between Geoconservation, enhancement of natural assets, dissemination and geoturism

Geoheritage is increasing its global and local importance not only as a scientific research topic, but also in relation to socio-economic activities that can benefit from Georesources. In this context, sites of geological interest may represent hot-spots for outdoor activities connected to Earth Sciences (e.g., geotourism, hiking and climbing). The UNESCO IGCP 3GEO project aims at offering innovative digital tools for geoheritage and geoscience communication through geoclimbing and geotrekking activities. In particular, climbing and trekking sites within established or aspiring geoparks, and other natural areas, have high geoheritage potential (Garcia-Rodriguez & Fernandez-Escalante, 2017; Ruban & Ermolaev, 2020), and are also suitable for education activities as well (Bollati et al., 2018). The goal of this project is the development of multimedia tools for geoheritage and Earth Science communication (Perotti et al., 2020) through a global network of iconic geoheritage sites equipped for climbing or featuring trekking trails. These sites include UNESCO Global Geoparks or natural areas (e.g., PARNA Chapada Diamantina, Kütralkura, Estrela, Psiloritis, Rocca di Cerere, Sesia Val Grande) in countries (Brazil, Chile, Greece, Italy, Oman, Portugal, South Africa, Spain) spread over four continents. Climbing cliffs and trekking routes are selected according to scientific and cultural, aesthetic and socio-economic values and their employability. A set of innovative geomatic techniques (e.g., 3D photogrammetry, Structure from Motion, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle surveys) are the tools for displaying and communicating geoheritage properties along selected geocliffs and geotrails. These web-based multimedia materials (e.g., 3D model of climbing cliffs) will be shared out among different users (e.g., schools, universities and general public) both for virtual reality and outdoor activities. The multidisciplinary and multicultural context of the 3GEO project is the key for a 360 degrees’ experience of geoheritage in Geoparks or natural protected areas, taking into account accessibility issues and global travel restrictions.

Geoclimbing & Geotrekking in Geoparks: a new UNESCO IGCP project for geoheritage communication and education

According to the Alzheimer Association, dementia is an overall term that covers a wide range of specific medical conditions such as progressive loss of memory and other neuropsychological functions (e.g., praxis, speech).  These symptoms are usually severe enough to impair a patient’s daily life. Alzheimer's disease (AD) accounts for two thirds of dementia syndromes in people older than 65 years.  According to the World Alzheimer Record 2020, over 50 million people are living with dementia worldwide. And this number is expected to double every 20 years, reaching 152 million cases of dementia in 2050.  The Dementia in Europe Yearbook 2019 recored that in Italy there were 1.279.366 cases in 2018 (2.12% of population), which are set to increase to 1.460.570 cases in 2025 (2.44% of population) and 2.247.715 cases in 2050 (4.13% of population). It is therefore imperative for governments, policy makers, scientific and cultural institutions to be able to respond properly to the challenges that come with a rising number of people with dementia within their countries. In this context, cultural institutions as museums play a pivotal role in dementia awareness and education. They can serve as safe places in which run a variety of activities through an ethical use of their collections as encouraged by Convention on the Value of Cultural Heritage for Society (2005). However, the existing literature focuses particularly on museum-led programs involving art galleries and collections (e.g., the MoMa Alzheimer’s Project). The goal of this presentation is to introduce attendees to the programs for people with dementia and their caregivers that have been developed at the Museum of Planetary Sciences (MSP) in Prato. This presentation will show the positive use of meteorite samples in multisensorial activities aiming to improve patients’ and their carers’ mood and self-esteem. The impact of such non-medical treatment, its incidence on lowering dementia caregivers stress levels, and the ascertain of the participants’ satisfaction levels will be also provided. Since its establishment in 2005, MSP is actively engaged in creating successful experiences for visitors with disabilities (e.g., blindness, visual impairment, autism), and is piloting at a national level diverse multisensory stimulation programs for people with dementia and their caregivers using astromaterials. For evaluation, quantitative and qualitative data were collected using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire (NPI-Q), the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) test, and the Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) interview. This presentation will also present the activities that have been performed during the Covid-19 pandemic. By assisting the patients and their caregivers, MSP provides an example of a much more comprehensive and meaningful museum therapy project, which represent a glimpse into the future of scientific museum programming.

Meteoritics as a source of well-being for people with dementia: an experience in the Planetary Sciences Museum of Prato (Italy)

Likewise other tidally-influenced environments, depositional and erosional processes, subsidence and sea-level changes have strongly modified the coastal landscape of Northern Adriatic lagoons over last millennia. Such rapid transformations induced significant consequences on the human settlement and, consequently, on the archaeological visibility of the area, which is still largely unexplored. We present here six metal finds fortuitously retrieved by fishermen in last decades in front of the barrier islands of the Marano Lagoon. The finds, immediately recognized as swords by their shape, were covered by a thick concretion mainly constituted of sand and coastal shell. Moreover, two items were inserted into a wooden sheath. Multi-analytical analyses carried out on the artefacts (X-ray radiography, laboratory- and synchrotron-based X-ray computed microtomography, radiocarbon dating and typo-chronology) combined with the study of the coastal paleo-environment (mainly based on historical cartography and remote sensing) allowed to define the main features of the items and to shed light both on the historical importance of the area as well on the significant morphological changes occurred in this coastal sector over the last millennium. For the first time, we are able to interpret an historical map of the 16th century, drawn by the Venetian cartographer Cristoforo Sabbadino, that depicts in detail the shoals along the coast and reports a unique wooden structure located in the sea, in front of one of the tidal mouths entering in the Marano Lagoon. The presented data indicate that the Marano Lagoon represented a major hub in Northern Adriatic during Late Middle Ages and early Modern Age connecting inland Europe with the Mediterranean. Moreover, the research highlights the onset of coastal erosion occurred in the last century after a phase of relatively geomorphic stability, possibly deriving from the intensification of human impact and climate change.

Tackling geohazard in populated geoheritage sites

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Three-dimensional geological cartography for geotourism: the Regional Reserve of Montalbano Jonico

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