Miloš Stankoviansky

Historical evolution of permanent gullies in the Myjava Hill Land, Slovakia

Abstract The Myjava Hill Land is part of the area with the highest density of permanent gullies in Slovakia (up to 11 km km−2). Gullies are often 10–15 m deep, and occasionally extend >20 m. The pattern and density of gullies have been controlled primarily by the original land use from the pre-collectivization era. Old maps and historical sources indicate two to three periods of gully formation. The central part of the area, settled between the second half of the 16th and the beginning of the 19th centuries, was affected by gully formation in two periods, the first between the end of the 16th century and the 1730s and the second roughly between the 1780s and 1840s. Marginal parts of the study area to the west and south–west, which were settled earlier, may have been affected by disastrous gullying as early as the 14th century. Gullies were formed during periods of extensive forest clearance and expansion of farmland, but the triggering mechanism of gullying was extreme rainfalls during the Little Ice Age. However, periods of gully formation in the Myjava Hill Land were not fully synchronous with the well-known phases of gullying in other central European countries.

The Potential of Permanent Gullies in Europe as Geomorphosites

Geotourism is a useful way to educate societies in the field of geomorphology and related natural hazards. Geosites, including geomorphosites, represent the basis for the development of this type of tourism. This study describes 12 representative gully regions within nine European countries. The characteristics of 42 permanent gullies, gully systems, and badland landscapes are presented. Based on scientific values of the sites, educational lessons to be learned were identified that are mainly related to (i) gullies as a geological window, (ii) present-day geomorphological processes and (iii) stages of historical gully erosion reflecting past human–environment interactions. To evaluate possible education activities, a geotouristic assessment of the studied gullies and badlands was made, based on scientific, educational, functional and touristic indicators. This assessment demonstrates a large difference between the selected gully and badland sites, particularly with regard to functional and tourist values. The geotouristic potential of gullies (badlands) is the highest in Italy and Spain and the lowest in Romania and Latvia. In some countries, permanent gullies are not regarded as geotouristic attractions at all, while in others, they constitute a significant element of their tourism development strategy. In our opinion, all activities must be part of a broader strategy for the development of geotourism in gully and badland regions, for example, gullies may be included as geosites within existing or planned geoparks.