Risk of Degradation and Coastal Flooding Hazard on Geoheritage in Protected Areas of the Semi-arid Coast of Brazil

Abstract

Geoconservation should be incorporated in the discussions regarding climate change impacts on geoheritage degradation, especially in coastal areas that are directly affected by extreme climate events. The geoheritage degradation risk in protected areas of the Brazilian semi-arid coast was assessed using a quantitative method. A correlation with the tidal flooding hazard predicted with the climate change scenario was also considered for the study areas. The results show that most of the geosites assessed present a high risk of degradation due, mainly, to their exposure to negligence and inadequate public management regarding their uses. All geosites located in the plain areas are exposed to the risk of flooding by rising tides, which is associated with human action and leads to worrying scenarios regarding the loss of scientific and aesthetic values. The collected data support the need to rethink geoheritage management in protected areas and the mitigation of problems that may become major threats in conjunction with global climate change.

Climate Change and Geotourism: Impacts, Challenges, and Opportunities

“…In other environments, geosites and features located on the coast and adjacent to rivers are likely to be most susceptible to climate change, particularly through the effects of sea-level rise and increased erosion or flooding [1,3]. Coastal geosites are particularly at risk from sea-level rise, compounded by likely changes in the intensity, frequency, and magnitude of storms and storm surges, with associated impacts from augmented coastal erosion and flooding [1,[5][6][7]. They may undergo accelerated cliff retreat, resulting in the loss of features such as sea stacks [123] as well as foreshore lowering, possible burying of foreshore exposures by landslide debris or increased longshore sediment transfer, and loss of access through submergence (Figure 1c).…”

“…Climate change is one of the major issues facing society and presents challenges and constraints both for geoconservation [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] and for geotourism [8]. It is identified as a 'main focus area' for UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGps), which have an important role in raising public awareness of climate change and promoting mitigation and adaptation, adopting nature-based solutions, reducing natural disaster-related risks, encouraging behavioural change, and establishing good environmental governance [9][10][11].…”

Sustainable Geotourism in the Chiusella Valley (NW Italian Alps): A Tool for Enhancing Alpine Geoheritage in the Context of Climate Change

“…Consequences for geotourism include the degradation or disappearance of geotourism resources and their cultural significance, diminished or restricted access to geological features or their prominence, the loss of important witnesses of past events on the Earth, such as rock formations, sediment layers, and landforms, or the loss of climate records due to melting glaciers [64]. Despite the rich literature about the impacts of climate change on general tourism [65], there is a lack of scientific literature on the effects of climate change on geotourism, with the exception of two main topics: (i) glaciers and high mountain environments [50,[66][67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76][77] and (ii) costal geosites, which suffer the risks of rising sea levels and coastal erosion [63,[78][79][80][81][82][83][84][85].…”