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Geoheritage in Hungary - present and future
Géza Chikán*, Ildikó Szentpétery, Szabolcs Nagy, Barbara Kerék, Ildikó Selmeczi and Gábor Csillag
The protection of the geological heritage has
a long history in Hungary. Formerly, geological
objects of value were placed in museums,
because this provided adequate protection
for them. Since the 1970s the importance of
in situ conservation has come to the front.
At present the ministry of the environment
provides the legal protection. However, it
has neither financial nor human resources
to carry out a professional review. Therefore,
it has been suggested that control should be
restored to the Geological and Geophysical
Institute of Hungary (formerly, and in the
text, Geological Institute). In this regard,
some promising cooperation is taking place
with the responsible colleagues in the ministry.
A review of the key sections records
has started and an experimental Internet
access to the elements of the database - on
a geological map compiled by the Institute
- has been provided.
Since the emergence of human society,
people have constantly struggled to
co-exist with their natural surroundings,
whilst having a sense of affinity for
nature’s beauty. Today, we have various
approaches to dealing with nature, from
constant redevelopment and improvement
of infrastructure, which barely takes the
environment into consideration, to a situation
where any change, even a new pylon,
is considered damaging.
Possibilities for the conservation of geological
heritage
The removal of certain geological ‘treasures’
from the landscape may be necessary
to protect them from damaging environmental
factors or from human impact. It is
also true that geology may be sidelined in
connection with environmental protection
and considered merely as a framework for
the protection of the fauna and flora.
While objects such as fossils and minerals
can be safely protected only in muse-
La protection de l’héritage géologique en
Hongrie a une longue histoire. Précédemment,
les objets géologiques de valeur
étaient placés dans les musées car cela
constituait pour eux une protection convenable.
Depuis les années 1970, l’importance
d’une conservation in situ est apparue
comme essentielle. Aujourd’hui, le ministère
de l’environnement a rendu légal cette protection.
Cependant, il n’a ni les ressources
financières ni le personnel nécessaire pour
effectuer une évaluation professionnelle des
sites. C’est pourquoi on a pensé à confier à
nouveau ce contrôle à L’Institut Géologique
et Géophysique de Hongrie (anciennement,
et dans le texte, L’Institut Géologique). A
cet égard, une coopération prometteuse
est mise en œuvre avec les responsables
des Géosciences au Ministère. La revue des
éléments clefs enregistrés a commencé et
un accès expérimental par Internet aux éléments
de la base de données est disponible –
sur carte géologique compilée par l’Institut.
ums, the in situ conservation of the geological
landscape is also desirable. An example
of this is the “footprint sandstone” from
Ipolytarnóc, pieces of which were removed
for conservation in the Museum of the
Hungarian Royal Geological Institute in
1902 and displayed in 1927 (Fig. 1).
En Hungría la protección del patrimonio
geológico tiene una larga historia. Antiguamente
los objetos geológicos de más valor
se llevaban a los museos, porque de este
modo quedaban perfectamente protegidos.
Desde los años 70 ha empezado a tener relevancia
la importancia de su conservación
in-situ. Actualmente el Ministerio de Medio
Ambiente les proporciona protección legal.
Sin embargo no dispone ni de recursos
humanos ni económicos para llevar a cabo
su estudio de un modo profesional. Por
ello se ha sugerido que se debería devolver
la competencia al Servicio Geológico y
Geofísico de Hungría (previamente y en el
texto está citado como Instituto Geológico).
A este respecto se está produciendo una
cooperación muy prometedora con los
colegas responsables del Ministerio. Se ha
empezado una revisión de los principales
cortes geológicos y se ha elaborado una
página web experimental para el acceso
a las bases de datos sobre un mapa compilado
por el Instituto.
The National Geological Key Section Programme
in Hungary
A significant initiative was taken in the
1970s in Hungary when efforts were made
toward geological protection. The National
Key Section Programme began in the Geo-
* Geological and Geophysical Institute of
Hungary, chikangeza@freemail.hu
Figure 1: The “footprint sandstone” (Lower Miocene) from Ipolytarnóc in the corridor of the Geological
and Geophysical Institute of Hungary.
European Geologist 34 | November 2012
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