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GEOSITES IN
THE CANARIES: STUDY, INVENTORY AND
OUTREACH Under
the law 42/2007 of Natural Heritage
and Biodiversity, geoheritage is
defined as: “The set of geological
natural resources of scientific,
cultural and/or educational value,
whether they are formations or
geological structures, landforms,
minerals, rocks, meteorites, fossils,
soils and any other geological
expressions which make it possible
to know, study and interpret: a) the
origin and evolution of the Earth,
b) the processes which have shaped
it, c) the past and present climates
and landscapes and d) the origin and
evolution of life”.
The knowledge of these geological
processes and elements, which have
created the environment where
millions of people live and
developed places where these
processes can be learnt, understood
and enjoyed, have resulted in an
indispensable element for the
sustainable development of the
population, either for locals or
tourists. Thus, this project has as
a general objective, which is the
characterization and promotion of
geological places with singularity,
beauty and outstanding heritage
assets present in the territory of
the Canary Islands, as well as its
marketing and tourist outreach for
the general harnessing of the
population.
For this purpose,
a catalogue with the inventory of
the main geosites will be created,
following the common analysis and
assessment methodology, adapted to
insular volcanic territories. This
methodology is based on the one
implemented by the Geological Survey
of Spain (The Geological and Mining
Institute of Spain, IGME in Spanish),
and developed in the definition of
geosites within the UNESCO Global
Geopark of Lanzarote and Chinijo
Islands. This catalogue will consist
of a series of geosites which
intends to cover, for the first
time, the most relevant aspects of
the geological history in the Canary
Islands as a whole, not only
considering those resulting from
internal geological processes (volcanism
and tectonics), but also the ones
linked to the external geological
agents and processes, fundamentally
erosion and sedimentation.
The
characterisation of geosites
constitute a strategic tool which
may be usable as scientific,
educative, cultural and touristic
resources either by the regional and
local Administration for management
and planning. Moreover, this
inventory will be useful for the
tourism industry as it will
diversify the choice offered to
tourists, becoming a source of
sustainable and “green” employment.
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View of the Taburiente caldera, La Palma
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El Pajerito volcano (historic volcanic field of Timanfaya)
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Dykes and faults cutting through the deposits of Fuerteventura Basal Complex |
