I'm overjoyed to learn that GSA, the Geological Society of America, is working on an official statement about geoheritage. Geoheritage is a term for describing sites of special and lasting interest ranging from your professor's favorite roadcut to whole regions of unique value for scientific and cultural reasons. "Large or small," the draft statement says, "and regardless of ownership, many are vulnerable to urbanization, infrastructure development, agriculture, over-use, or erosion."
In particular, the statement recommends that the United States join the rest of the world in establishing Geoparks. These are open-ended entities that help protect and preserve geoheritage sites by, in a word, making them valuable.
I'm especially proud that the draft statement cites my own Geoheritage category as a reference and resource. Comments on the draft statement are welcome until May 16.
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