Zbigniew Zwoliński

Sedimentology and geomorphology of overbank flows on meandering river floodplains

Abstract Along floodplains there occurs an ordered sequence of geomorphic events during floods. The following sequence occurs for individual flood events: (1) the rise of floodwater and of groundwater, (2) the inundation of the floodplain; (3a) adjustments of the overbank flow pattern to the floodplain environment; (3b) the flood peak; (4) the initial fall of floodwaters and changes in the overbank flow pattern; (5) a gradual cessation of the overbank flow; (6a) infiltration, evaporation and a wave-like motion of stagnant water; and (6b) postflood transformation under subaerial conditions. Field observations support this model for meandering rivers in the Polish Lowland.

Geo‐questionnaire: A Method and Tool for Public Preference Elicitation in Land Use Planning

Geo-questionnaire involves an integration of sketchable maps with questions, aimed at eliciting public preferences and attitudes about land allocation and services. Respondents can link their answers with corresponding locations on a map by marking points or sketching polygon features. Geo-questionnaires have been used to learn about perceptions and preferences of city residents for specific types of land use, place-based services, and development projects. This article reports on results of an empirical study, in which an online geo-questionnaire was designed and implemented to elicit preferences of residents in guiding an urban development plan. Preferences collected in the form of polygon sketches were processed using GIS operations and mapped for visual interpretation. The article focuses on aggregation and analysis of respondent preferences including the analysis of positional and attribute uncertainty. Results of the study show that geo-questionnaire is a scalable method for eliciting public preferences with a potential for meaningfully informing land use planning.

Variability of Water Chemistry in Tundra Lakes, Petuniabukta Coast, Central Spitsbergen, Svalbard

Samples of water from small tundra lakes located on raised marine terraces on the eastern coast of Petuniabukta (Ebbadalen, Central Spitsbergen) were examined to assess the changes in water chemistry that had occurred during the summer seasons of 2001–2003 and 2006. The unique environmental conditions of the study region include the predominance of sedimentary carbonate and sulphate rocks, low precipitation values, and an active permafrost layer with a maximum thickness of 1.2 m. The average specific electric conductivity (EC) values for the three summer seasons in the four lakes ranged from 242 to 398 μS cm−1. The highest EC values were observed when the air temperature decreased and an ice cover formed (cryochemical effects). The ion composition was dominated by calcium (50.7 to 86.6%), bicarbonates (39.5 to 86.4%), and sulphate anions. The high concentrations of HCO3 −, SO4 2−, and Ca2+ ions were attributed to the composition of the bedrock, which mainly consists of gypsum and anhydrite. The average proportion of marine components in the total load found in the Ebbadalen tundra lake waters was estimated to be 8.1%. Precipitation supplies sulphates (as much as 69–81%) and chlorides (14–36%) of nonsea origin. The chief source of these compounds may be contamination from the town of Longyearbyen. Most ions originate in the crust, the active layer of permafrost, but some are atmospheric in origin and are either transported or generated in biochemical processes. The concentrations of most components tend to increase during the summer months, reaching a maximum during freezing and partially precipitating onto the bottom sediments.

Geodiversity and biodiversity of the postglacial landscape (Dębnica river catchment, Poland)

Abstract The preparation of a proper zoning plan or landscape-ecological plan requires taking into account recognition of the natural values of an area covered by the plan and evaluating its abiotic and biotic diversities. The aim of the paper is to present the new approach to the procedure of geodiversity and biodiversity assessment. This procedure is used to characterise abiotic and biotic heterogeneity of the postglacial landscape modified by a man, tested on Dębnica River catchment (Western Pomerania, Poland). This catchment is a representative example illustrating the landscape of Central European Plain. The analytical algorithm of the geodiversity assessment is based on appropriate selection of the evaluation criteria: lithological, relative heights, landform fragmentation, hydrographical elements and mesoclimatic conditions. Biodiversity was assessed on the basis of real vegetation, potential natural vegetation and the degree of anthropisation of the natural vegetation with respect to syngenesis of plant associations. Seven factor maps were obtained: five for the diversity of abiotic elements, and two for the diversity of biotic elements, which became the basis for the creation of total geodiversity and biodiversity maps. Maps produced in accordance with given methodology may find a wide range of applications.

Magnitude of Fluvial Transport and Rate of Denudation in A Non‐Glacierised Catchment in A Polar Zone, Central Spitsbergen

Abstract Research into the magnitude of fluvial transport was carried out in the non‐glacierised polar ynamisk ekken catchment in the region of Petunia Bukta, in the central part of est pitsbergen. The study period included two ablation seasons (uly–ugust) in 2008 and 2009. The stream flows from the glacial cirque cutting the north‐western edge of the ordiekammen assif. The bedrock is composed of sedimentary rocks. The ynamisk ekken is periodic stream, mainly fed from snow cover from une to early eptember. The other components of the feeding in the ablation seasons are less effective precipitation and groundwater from the active layer of permafrost. Medium discharge was 27.4 dm3 s–1 ranging from 0.1 to 250.8 dm3 s–1. Average ionic composition of the water indicates the hydrogeochemical sulphate‐bicarbonate‐calcium type. A tendency of systematic increase in the proportion of sulphates and decreasing share of bicarbonate ions in the ionic composition of water during the ablation season was observed. This correlates with the gradual decrease in the discharge rate and the decrease of the meltwater in the stream feed. The proportion of geogenic components in the dissolved load material outflow from the catchment is 75%. It consists of mainly bicarbonates, sulphates and calcium, which are derived from the dissolving of limestone, gypsum and anhydrite. The average value of the chemical denudation was 0.35 t km–2 d–1 and the mechanical denudation 0.32 t km–2 d–1. The results are similar to those obtained in previous years, reflecting the relatively large stability of the polar environment.

Sedimentary fluxes and budgets in changing cold environments: the global IAG/AIG sediment budgets in cold environments (SEDIBUD) programme

1Geological Survey of Norway (NGU), Quaternary Geology and Climate group, Trondheim, Norway 2Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Department of Geography, Trondheim, Norway 3Queen’s University, Department of Geography, Kingston, Canada 4University of Clermont-Ferrand, Laboratory of Physical and Environmental Geography GEOLAB, CNRS, Clermont-Ferrand, France 5Natural Research Centre of North-western Iceland, Saudarkrokur, Iceland 6University of Arkansas, Department of Geosciences, Fayetteville AR, USA 7 University of Otago, Department of Geography, Dunedin, New Zealand 8University of Salzburg, Department of Geography and Geology, Salzburg, Austria 9University of Colorado, Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, Boulder, CO, USA 10Durham University, Department of Geography, Durham, UK 11Adam Mickiewicz University, Institute of Paleogeography and Geoecology, Poznan, Poland

Existing and proposed urban geosites values resulting from geodiversity of Poznań City

Abstract Poznań, a city in central-western Poland, is located in the lowland region but has no less attractive geomorphological and human history. It was here that Poland was born at the end of the tenth century. The city’s location is connected with the meridian course of the Warta River valley. In contrast, in the northern part of the city, there is a vast area of the frontal moraines of the Poznań Phase of the Weichselian Glaciation. Against the backdrop of the geomorphological development of the city, the article presents the existing geosites, classified as urban geosites. The present geosites include three lapidaries with Scandinavian postglacial erratics, one of them also with stoneware, a fragment of a frontal push moraine and impact craters. Besides, three locations of proposed geosites with rich geomorphological and/or human history were identified. These are as follows: the peat bog located in the northern part of the city, defence ramparts as exhumed anthropogenic forms, and the Warta River valley. The existing and proposed geosites in Poznań were evaluated in three ways. In general, it should be assumed that the proposed new geosites are higher ranked than the current ones.

Methods for Assessing Geodiversity

Abstract The assessment of geodiversity can be made with qualitative, quantitative and qualitative–quantitative methods. Qualitative methods have a descriptive character and are suitable for nominal and ordinal data. Quantitative methods are based on a set of parameters and indicators to determine a geodiversity index of a certain area. Qualitative–quantitative methods result in a combination of quantitative (i.e., digital) and cause-effect data (i.e., relational and explanatory). At the current stage of development, qualitative–quantitative methods are the most advanced and the ones offering more reliable results. Their main advantage is the integration of data from different sources and with different content and their wide use within geographic information systems, both at the stage of data collection and data integration, as well as during numerical processing and output presentation. The limitation of these methods is related to difficulties concerning the validation of results. The development of qualitative–quantitative methods associated with cognitive issues should be expected in the near future, oriented towards ontology and the Semantic Web.

Temporal Variation in Vegetation Indexes for Pine and Beech Stands During the Vegetation Season, Szczecin Lowland, Poland

Abstract Located in north-western Poland, the Bukowska Forest and Goleniowska Forest are vast woodlands consisting of areas with a homogeneous species composition that have been scarcely affected by humans. In this respect, they provided an excellent subject for scientific research, the purpose of which was to determine quantitative differences in selected vegetation indices of pine and beech stands in various periods during their vegetation seasons. Another purpose was to characterize the variation in these indices for each stand in its vegetation season. Four Landsat 5 TM images taken in 2007 and 2010 at four different points of vegetation season provided the basis for the analysis. In the analysis, 19 wooded areas with a homogeneous species composition were tested. In Bukowska Forest, the tested area was a beech stand, and in Goleniowska Forest, it was a pine stand. Acquired data was used to calculate the following vegetation indices: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Transformed Vegetation Index (TVI), Green Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (Green NDVI), Normalized Difference Greenness Index (NDGI) and Normalized Difference Index (NDI). Subsequent research allowed to establish that the beech and pine stands differed significantly with respect to their calculated vegetation indices. These differences derived both from the biochemical and structural attributes of leaves and needles, as well as from transformations that occur in the stands during vegetation seasons. Analysis of the indices’ allowed us to determine these differences and the influence of the stands’ phenological phases on the indices.

Mapping geosites as gateways to the geotourism management in Central High-Atlas (Morocco)

Abstract Demnate commune and High-Tessaout valley are located in the Moroccan central High-Atlas. They have a great and much diversified geological and geomorphological heritage and exceptional landscapes of high mountains. The data obtained from the current work indicate that the studied area present high tourist vocation, in the fact that this territory preserves a large number of geosites linked to many witnesses fossils of extinct animals such dinosaurs footprints, outcropping rock formations of the Precambrian and Mesozoic. Further, it has many remarkable landforms and geosites such as canyons, natural bridge, spectacular waterfalls and scree slopes. The findings support that the area attracts many tourists every year. However, this number remains restricted due to the lack of tools of promotion and mediation of its geoheritage and also due to the low exploitation of the geodiversity. Regarding this situation, geotouristic routes represented on touristic map appear as an essential tool for geotourism promotion and as an efficient means of geosciences popularisation. This paper illustrates three geotouristic routes describing the main geosites in rural areas of Demnate and High-Tessaout valley. These geotourism itineraries can help to explain the high potential interest of the studied areas in geotourism terms.