Role of Urban Geology in Geo-conservation
The rocks and landforms of Britain contain a unique story; a story of mountain building, climate change and the evolution of life. This story can be pieced together from the clues within our landscape and within the rock record; yet every year these clues are under threat. Uplands are forested, obscuring the evidence of past landscapes; the natural coastline is disappearing under concrete sea walls; and quarries which expose the fabric of the earth are being infilled with rubbish. Clearly our earth heritage is under threat and conserving the rocks and landforms which comprise this resource is a challenging task. At the heart of effective conservation is the need for public awareness and interest, determining popular commitment to conserve for future generations. However well framed the statutory powers of conservation are and however much effort is expended on site safeguard, it is clear that these will be ineffective without a public will to conserve. The public needs to have an empathy with natural landscapes, and with the rocks from which they are carved, for the objectives of conservation to triumph.
Over the last few years the importance of public participation and awareness in earth heritage conservation has been widely acknowledged. This agenda has been championed by Professor Matthew Bennett along with others and collectively they emphasis the need for a twin track approach to earth heritage conservation, in which one strand aims to identify, protect and manage a network of protected areas jewels in the geological crown while the other strand involves raising awareness of geology and its conservation, irrespective of its intrinsic value or extrinsic value. Clearly one of these strands tends to focus on communities of interest, such as professional and amateur geologists, while the other encompasses all types and sectors of the community. Since much of this community is by location an urban one Professor Bennett has argued that the urban landscape is a key battle ground for public awareness.
The geological resource within urban areas is a diverse one from polished rock slabs and building stones in the high street to tombstones and memorials in cemeteries and to larger public rock works in metropolitan parks such as the Battersea Park or Crystal Place Park. Illustrating this resource, developing urban geological resources and championing the importance of urban geology are all key themes of this research agenda. Good practice in geo-conservation was brought together in 1996 in the Geology on Your Doorstep, edited by Professor Bennett and published by the Geological Society of London. The Russell-Cotes Geological Terrace provides one such resource, and was brought to Bournemouth University in May 2005, Russell-Cotes Geological Terrace.
For more details contact Professor Matthew Bennett
Selected Publications
BENNETT, M.R., DOYLE, P., LARWOOD, J.G. & PROSSER, C.D. (Eds) Geology on Your Doorstep. Geological Society, London.
BENNETT, M.R. & DOYLE, P. 1996. The rationale for earth heritage conservation and the role of urban geology. In: BENNETT, M.R., DOYLE, P., LARWOOD, J.G. & PROSSER, C.D. (Eds) Geology on Your Doorstep. Geological Society, London, 3-10.
BENNETT, M.R. & DOYLE, P. 1996. The introduction of geology into the urban environment: principles and methods. In: BENNETT, M.R., DOYLE, P., LARWOOD, J.G. & PROSSER,
DOYLE, P., BENNETT, M.R. & ROBINSON, E. 1996. Creating urban geology: a record of Victorian innovation in park design. In: BENNETT, M.R., DOYLE, P., LARWOOD, J.G. & PROSSER, C.D. (Eds) Geology on Your Doorstep. Geological Society, London, 74-84.
INGHAM, S.M., DOYLE, P. & BENNETT, M.R. 1996. The changing nature of the urban earth heritage site resource. In: BENNETT, M.R., DOYLE, P., LARWOOD, J.G. & PROSSER, C.D. (Eds) Geology on Your Doorstep. Geological Society, London, 31-35.
DOYLE, P. & BENNETT, M.R. 1998. Earth heritage conservation: the past, present and future agenda? In: BENNETT, M.R. & DOYLE, P. (Eds) Issues in Environmental Geology. Geological Society, London, 43-67.
BENNETT, M.R., DOYLE, P., GLASSER, N.F, & LARWOOD, J. 1997. Geological conservation in disused quarries: how effective is the conservation void? Journal of Environmental management 50, 223-233.
DOYLE, P. & BENNETT, M.R. 2000. Earth heritage conservation: the importance of the built environment. Urban Design Studies 5, 47-56.
