Inventory and Assessment of the Geoheritage of the Sudetic Foreland Geopark (South-Western Poland)

This paper presents an inventory and quantitative assessment of the scientific value (SV) and the degradation risk (DR) of the most important geosites of the Sudetic Foreland Geopark (South-Western Poland). It is an area with an exceedingly interesting and complex geological structure. In the Geopark's rocks, 600 million years of history have been recorded: from magmatism on the active margin of Gondwana, through the Variscan continental collision, to the Pleistocene glaciation and Holocene geomorphological processes. The unique geodiversity of the Sudetic Foreland Geopark manifests itself not only in the form of numerous old quarries, places of searching for minerals or in natural rock outcrops. It is also evidenced by the centuries-old stonework traditions of this region, the use of natural rocks in architecture, as well as archaeological evidence for the extraction and processing of natural resources already in the Mesolithic. As a result of the assessment, the geosites with the highest scientific value were identified: Goethe Rock, Skalickie Rocks, Targowica basalt quarry, Pilawa Gorna mine, old nickel ore mine in Szklary, gneisses from Gosciecice outcrop, granite quarry in Gosciecice Srednie, the Piekielny Stream gap, Rocks under the Borowa and Wloki migmatite quarry. Geosites within the Sleza massif have been comprehensively included due to their thematic connection. Apart from the most important geosites, the issue of geodiversity sites and geodiversity elements was also discussed. Based on the analysis, new objects in this area were also proposed to be included in the legal form of inanimate nature protection.