PROPOSAL OF NEW GEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS OF INTERNATIONAL RELEVANCE TO BE INCLUDED IN THE SPANISH GLOBAL GEOSITES PROJECT

Co-sponsored by UNESCO, the IUGS has been promoting for the last fifteen years an ambitious global initiative to undertake this inventory: the Global Geosites project.The project followed the methodology agreed upon by IUGS and UNESCO, and developed by Wimbledon (1996) within the European Association for the Conservation of the Geological Heritage (ProGEO).

In synthesis, the methodology proposed in the Geosites project for establishing the final list of sites of geological interest of international relevance may be summarised as follows:

a) The establishment in each country of a network of thematic and regional experts covering all the necessary disciplines.

b) The selection and definition in each country of the most relevant geological frameworks. A framework is a topic (geomorphological, stratigraphic, paleontological, etc.), geologic event, time period, regional geotectonic element, or metallogenic phase, which is important or significant at international level.

c) The selection and definition, using standard formats, of geosites representative of the geological frameworks defined in the previous phase. Hence, geosites are not to be selected in isolation but from a particular and predefined geological framework.

d) Comparison of the interest and merit of the geosites established in the different countries for the same geological framework, followed by final selection of those warranting inclusion in the final list of sites of geological interest (i.e., geosites) of international relevance. This phase should be undertaken by experts from different countries, grouped by thematic and/or regional frameworks.

The 21 Spanish geological frameworks already approved are listed at the end of this form. NEW FRAMEWOKS SHOULD BE PROPOSED ON THE BASIS OF THEIR INTERNATIONAL RELEVANCE.

Proposer(s)
Institution or workplace
e-mail
GEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK PROPOSAL FORM (1)
Framework name
Geological Units involved(2)
Geological domains involved (2)
Description
Justification and comparative assessment
(why is it significant and conspicuouswithin the global geological record)
Location within Spain / State (Autonomous Region):
County(ies):
Key references
In order to facilitate subsequent field work and,do not hesitate to add or attach additional documentationevaluation (GIS shape files, scanned documents, documentation in pdf, etc.)

(1) Data will be treated as proposals that can be modified in later phases of the inventory.

(2)See the list of geological units and domains at the end of this document. In some cases, these data may seem irrelevant but they must be filled in if they provide key information to understand the meaning of the framework.

IN ORDER TO PROPOSENEW GEOSITES RELATED TO THIS CONTEXT, IT IS NECESSARY TO FILL IN THE FORM: nuevas_propuestas_lugares_geosites_Inglés.doc

This file is available on the website: under the section: Proyectos destacados→Global Geosites

EXPERT SELF-ASSESSMENT

PRELIMINARY INFORMATON
Mark with an X the main lines of argumentation used in answering the questionnaire, indicating the importance (high-medium - low) of each one of them..
LINES OF ARGUMENTATION / HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW
My experience on the subject and/or area as a professional, researcher, etc.
Previous work by Spanish researchers on the subject.
Previous work by foreign researchers on the subject
My intuition, based on previous knowledge, due to the lack of objective information.

Comments:

THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR COLLABORATION
Please
DO NOT FORGETto submit your answers
to the project manager:

GEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORKS OF INTERNATIONAL RELEVANCE

(Annex VIII-2 Act 42/2007, updated in the project Global Geosites in Spain)

1. Fluvial network, raña deposits and appalachian relief of the Iberian Massif.
2. Coastlines of the Iberian Peninsula.
3. Carbonate and evaporite karst systems of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands.
4. Lower and Middle Paleozoic stratigraphic successions.
5. Carboniferous of the Cantabrian Zone.
6. Rifting of Pangea and Mesozoic successions of the Betic and Iberian Ranges.
7. Mesozoic continental fossils and ichnofossils.
8. The Cretaceous-Paleogene (K/T) boundary.
9. South Pyrenean synorogenic basins.
10. Continental Tertiary basins and associated deposits of eastern Spain.
11. Olistostrome units of the Betic Foreland.
12. Messinian evaporite episodes
13. Vertebrate deposits of the Spanish Pliocene and Pleistocene.
14. Neogene and Quaternary volcanism of the Iberian Peninsula.
15. Volcanic edifices and morphologies of the Canary Islands.
16. The Iberian Variscan Orogen.
17. Miocene extension in the Alborán Domain.
18. Mercury mineralization in the region of Almadén.
19. The Iberian Pyrite Belt.
20. Lead-Zinc and Iron mineralization in the Urgonian of the Basque-Cantabrian Basin.
21. Ophiolitic complexes of the Iberian Peninsula.

MOST REPRESENTATIVE GEOLOGICAL UNITS (Annex VIII-1, Act 42/2007)

1. Structures and outstanding geological formations of the Variscan Orogene in the Iberian Massif.
2. Structures and outstanding geological formations of the basement, allochthonous units and Meso-Cenozoic cover in the Alpine ranges.
3. Structures and outstanding geological formations of the Cenozoic continental and marinebasins.
4. Volcanic systems.
5. Deposits, soils and outstanding landforms representative of current and past climate action.
6. Deposits and outstanding landforms ofaeolian and fluvial origin.
7. Coastal and shallow water deposits and landforms.
8. Carbonate and evaporate karst systems

GEOLOGICAL DOMAINS

1. Duero-Almazán basin / 12.Balearic Islands
2. Ebro basin / 13.Prebetic range and tabular cover of the Iberian plateau
3. Guadalquivir and postorogenic Betic basins / 14.Subbetic ranges
4. Guadiana basin / 15.Gibraltar Domain
5. Tajo-Mancha basin / 16.Betic Internal Zone
6. Eastern basins / 17.Cantabrian Zone
7. Canary Islands / 18.West Asturian-Leonese Zone
8. Iberian Range / 19.Galicia Tras-os-Montes Zone
9. Coastal-Catalonian ranges / 20.Central-Iberian Zone
10. Pyrenees / 21.Ossa-Morena Zone
11. Basque-Cantabrian ranges and basin. / 22.South Portuguese Zone