Dénes Lóczy

Climate change and soil moisture: A case study

Abstract An important aspect of regional climate change is alteration in soil moisture availability. The EPIC (Erosion Productivity Impact Calculator — Sharpley and Williams, 1990) model is applied to estimate soil hydrology consequences in a representative subcatchment (24 km 2 ) of Lake Balaton, Hungary. The study is based on the soil hydrology parameters of the EPIC model, which exhibit a relatively fast response to the climate variations. To specify the regional climate scenario for Hungary in semi-annual time resolution, a statistical approach computing regression between regional and hemispherical mean climate characteristics is employed. The semi-annual scenarios are further refined by applying the principle of geographical analogy. This difference corresponds to a 0.5 °K increase of the hemispherical mean temperature, i.e. the climate after 20–40 years of monotonous warming (IPCC, 1996a). Diurnal statistical parameters which correspond to present (base-line) and future climates of the investigated site are finally introduced into the built-in weather generator of the EPIC model. A supplementary factor of variation in soil hydrology is crop-rotation, responsible for half of the standard deviations, as compared to the hypothetical maize monoculture experiment. Climate generated differences in transpiration, soil moisture content, and crop-available water during water stress days. In connection with the assumed warming, there is a general trend towards drought during the vegetation growing period.

Flood hazard in Hungary: a re-assessment

Some decades ago the concept of flood hazard in the Carpathian Basin was interpreted solely as riverine flood hazard, mostly restricted to the Tisza and Danube Rivers, and was closely associated with the impacts of river flow regulation in the second half of the 19th century. Recent assessments, however, allow us to outline a more diverse picture. Climate change is predicted to bring about both an increase in the frequency of droughts and excessive rainfall events, resulting in irregulaties in the water regimes of rivers in Hungary. Excess water hazard from raised groundwater levels is found to affect much larger areas than previously thought. Recent strongly localized cloudbursts, point to the increasing significance of flash floods.Riverine flooding and excess water hazard are more common in lowlands, whereas flash flood hazards are primarily, but not exclusively, affect the mountainous and hilly regions of the country. This paper intends to assess the relative importance of the three types of inundation hazard analyzed and to illustrate their overall spatial occurrences by microregions on a map series.

Mapping direct human impact on the topography of Hungary

Summary. Similarly to other European countries, human impacts of various types are discernible in all regions of Hungary. Restricting the infl uence of human activities to direct transformation of topographic conditions, primary and secondary landforms created, the main categories of symbols included in the legend of an overview map refer to water management (fl ood-control dykes, dams and canals); to housing development, industry and transportation (landfi lls, sealed, levelled and ter-raced surfaces; motorway/railway embankments and cuts), to agriculture (terraces, hollow roads) as well as to other human activities with geomorphic impact (military and sports facilities). Th e map symbols are designed to provide some indication of the relative extent of human action and the size of anthropogenic landforms. Usually two (large or small scale impact) or three (large, medium or small scale) relative size categories are applied. Th e data base for the map is processed at 1:500,000 scale, allowing some reduction in scale for fi nal publication in an international ”Atlas of Human mpact I on Topography” under preparation by members of the IAG Working Group ”Human Impact on the Landscape”, created in 2005.Zusammenfassung.

Recent Landform Evolution in Hungary

Fluvial geomorphic processes (channel and floodplain evolution) are widespread in the extensive lowlands of Hungary. Since flow regulation in the nineteenth century, river channels have shown adjustments of considerable degree. Some agricultural areas in hills and low mountain basins are seriously affected by water erosion, particularly gully development on loess. Although all sand dunes have been stabilized by now, historically wind erosion has also been a major geomorphic agent in blown-sand areas. The areas affected by mass movements and karst processes are limited but their processes still operate – partly in function of the changing climatic conditions. Applied geomorphological research focuses on ever intensifying human impact on the landscape (particularly in mining districts), which has become the primary driver of recent geomorphic evolution in Hungary, too.

Hydromorphological assessment of the lower Hungarian Drava section and its floodplain

The hydromorphological properties of rivers and their floodplains receive increased attention both in basic research and water management. A comparison of hydromorphological parameters before and after river regulation (involving floodplain drainage) provides important information for river management, particularly floodplain rehabilitation. The paper assesses a selected reach of the Drava River and the corresponding floodplain utilising two international approaches, the REFORM framework and the Italian Morphological Quality Index.

Geoheritage, Geoconservation, Geomorphosites in Hungary

In addition to geological sites of scientific interest, which appear on the list of key sections compiled by experts of the Hungarian Geological Institute, geomorphosites constitute an important group of protected earth sciences spots. In Hungary the Act on Nature Conservation of 1996 ensures the protection of objects of scientific, cultural, aesthetic, educational, economic or other public interest in several categories and at different hierarchical levels (National Parks, Protected Landscapes, Nature Reserves and Natural Monuments of local importance). UNESCO Geoparks represent an additional category, which serve above all the aims of regional development and intend to increase public awareness to the environment and earth sciences. For most of the geomorphosites described in the present volume nature trails have been established. The foremost routes advisable for people who intend to visit geomorphosites are tourist trails, of which the Countrywide Blue Tour and the Rockenbauer Blue Tour are the most important.

Anthropogenic Geomorphology in Environmental Management

Human activities with geomorphic impact become an integrated part of environmental management, encompassing both the utilization of environmental resources and the simultaneous protection of environmental values. The objectives of anthropogenic geomorphological research in environmental management include the prediction of the course of geomorphic evolution after human intervention over various time-scales (directly providing geomorphological data for environmental management); promoting the restoration of degraded landscapes; the identification of landforms worth preserving (serving landscape conservation through estimating the conservational value and the vulnerability of landforms). The rehabilitation of the landscape is particularly important in industrial and mining regions. River channel and floodplain restoration measures are also in the forefront of interest and serve landscape ecological purposes. Fulfilling these requirements, geomorphology, in the 21st century will acquire an even more important role in environmental management.

The Changing Geomorphology of Danubian Floodplains in Hungary

The once extensive floodplains along the Hungarian section of the Danube have mostly disappeared by now or have been restricted to certain reaches of the river: the Szigetkoz alluvial fan, minor remnants in the environs of Budapest and the Gemenc Forest and Beda-Karapancsa area along the southernmost Hungarian section studied here (continued on Croatian territory). From ancient times floodplains have supplied valuable economic resources and, consequently, have undergone major transformations. They are now mostly under cultivation or environmental protection. In the paper their natural and man-influenced evolution is outlined with an evaluation of perspectives for rehabilitation. Floodplain topography is evaluated and mapped for features of natural and man-made origin as well for present-day functioning in the landscape. In compliance with EU directives intensive farming is envisaged to cease over large areas of lower productivity beyond flood-control dykes and these areas will be available for rehabilitation serving conservation (through landform and habitat restoration) and flood control (through flood-water storage). Locally, traditional floodplain economy (fishing, grazing, vegetable gardens and orchards) is being restored.

Playing on reality: do geomodels improve the perception of geographical terms?

ABSTRACT Remodeling of geography education has been an ongoing challenge recently. Constructivist pedagogy, employing tools of problem and model-based learning, offers new opportunities to meet these challenges. Geomodels, flumes and stream tables may ease the understanding of geographic processes through hand-on-experience for students. With a computer-controlled geomodel, we analyzed the development of 36 high school students’ terminology in the fields of potamology and remote sensing. Potamology terms, provided after the experimental session, were more focused and reflected the information perception and fixation during the experiment. Three weeks later the terminology of the students indicated a partial fixation of the relevant terms. When students’ terminology on remote sensing was analyzed, the pre-experiment terms were loosely connected to the topic. Over the class, students’ terminology increased in the field of potamology. Although it became more topic-specific and focused, students’ remote sensing terminology still contained a large number of off-topic terms by the end of the experiment and three weeks later. Our findings revealed one of the major weaknesses of the Hungarian educational system, i.e. teachers are forced to follow the conventional geographical curricula, therefore hindering their adaptation to cutting-edge educational methods and the learning-by-doing approach of the Western European and North American syllabi.

General Description of Glaciokarsts

This chapter presents the glacier types associated with karsts and the types of glaciokarst. Among the latter, the glacier/karst interactions and planform types are analysed in detail. The conditions of glacier formation are investigated and the geomorphological zones and subzones of glaciokarst are overviewed. When presenting the properties of glaciokarst, the balance of subglacial waters and epikarst characteristics are described, glaciokarst types are distinguished by the age and mode of origin and the modes and rates of transformation of landforms are identified.