Journal of Geoconservation Research
Volume:3 Issue: 1, Winter Spring 2020

Environmental problems due to mining activities in Nigeria and Cameroon have been a source of geopolitical concern. Here, we explore these issues in terms of the balance of economic benefits from mining and ensuring geological site maintenance and enhancement. The study was carried out through the use of questionnaires and interviews. 179 respondents were sampled, 147 in Nigeria and 32 in Cameroon. The results suggest that there are more perceived benefits than losses in mining activities. Responses show that over 90% (40.11% agree and 51.98% strongly agree) confirmed that mining has brought gains to their community and so mining activities should continue. On the other hand, fewer than 8% (4.52% disagree and 3.39% strongly disagree) are against the view that mining brought gains to their community and so mining activities should be stopped. Some of the gains from mining activities include employment opportunities and assistance or compensation received from the mining companies. Although there are geopolitical concerns, as shown by the 60.23% responses agreeing that there are conflicts between mining companies and the community due to mining activities, these concerns are minimal. The concerns range from negative impacts of mining such as pollution-induced health problems as a result of contaminated water and land, destruction of aquatic creatures, mining pits as death traps, as well as destruction of farm lands. Geopolitical concerns include lack of payment of compensation, tax and royalties as well as corruption of community leaders who receive benefits that ought to accrue to the entire community. The study concludes that with regulations of the negative effect of mining, mining can be very beneficial to the people because the negative geopolitical concerns raised are less than the benefits derived.

The present work investigates the mining and sale of fossiliferous Burmese amber to determine if the profits are being used by the Myanmar military to commit atrocities against minority groups or ethnic armies within the country, as recently implied.  Our conclusion, based on the information available to us, is that the great majority of Burmese amber fossils up to 2016 were taken across the border and sold in China.  At this time, the amber mines were under the control of the Kachin Independent Army (KIA) or unregulated.  After heavy fighting between the KIA and the Myanmar military from June 2017 to June - July 2018, the amber mines in the Hukawng Valley were occupied by the Myanmar government and presently, most of these mines are closed or are operated illegally or worked only intermittingly on a small scale.  We have not been able to substantiate claims that millions of dollars from the sale of Burmese amber fossils were used by the Myanmar government to dominate minority groups within the country.  At least up to 2017, there were no, or only insignificant funds, received by the Myanmar government from the mining and sale of Burmese amber. Thus we see no reason to halt the purchase of Burmese amber fossils or for editors and publishers to reject scientific papers describing these rare inclusions, which otherwise would be used for carvings or jewelry and become lost to science.

The use of GIS, remote sensing, and other geographic tools in geoconservation and geotourism is increasing. These tools – hereafter referred to as ‘Geographic Information Technology’ (GIT) tools – have the potential to simplify workflow in geoconservation assessment and inventory, be employed as decision support and decision making tools for complex decisions, or be used to enhance communication and user experience in geotourism. In this paper, we review the progress on the use of GIT tools in geoheritage and geotourism to date, highlighting current gaps in practice. By way of an interview of prominent global geoconservation and geotourism professionals conducted in 2018, we show that approximately 25% of the surveyed workforce use some type of GIT tool to aid in decision support, decision making, or for communication(s) of inventory elements and features of interest. Upon review of the literature, it appears that the vast majority of tools are used for communications of inventory, features and site maps. Opportunities for further improvement in the field will most likely be realised when more sophisticated decision-making tools become available for geoconservationists and geotourism professionals, especially in the use of GIS Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (GIS-MCDA) to rank and curate inventory, geosites or geotouristic experiences. We conclude our discussion with a case study demonstrating the use of selected GIT tools in the process of decision support, decision-making, and communications. We show that at each step in the process of geoconservation, there is a GIT tool that can simplify workflow, and be used to cross-collaborate with other users or platforms. With further refinement, GIT tools should be able to support geoconservationists and geotouristic professionals in global decision making – for assessment, inventory, and standardisation of interpretations of landscape values and potential use.

Nowadays, mining tourism is known as a strategy for local development and an alternative economy in remote areas. Yazd province is Iran's mineral hub and has a high potential for promoting mining tourism. However, this form of tourism in the province has not been considered as it should. This paper emphasizes on recognizing the mining tourism routes in Yazd province. Field trip and observation method were used in this research, and the results identified four routes (Taft-Mehriz route; west of Meybod city; the route from Yazd to Tabas and The distance between Bafgh and Bahabad) for promoting mining tourism in the province.

Re-imagining the geotourism experience through the lens of slow tourism, in this paper we lay out a pathway towards a more nourishing, engaging, and educational experience that contributes to both geoconservation and a reshaping of the tourism economy in light of recent disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Evidence suggests that to date, and further highlighted by unfolding local and global responses to the pandemic, mainstream approaches to conservation, protection, and tourism have poorly served our unique geoheritage landscapes and features. We demonstrate the potential for community led development utilising internationally recognised practises to provide a foundation for low impact and sustainable tourism, education, and training opportunities of benefit to local, regional, and national communities. We identify the eastern Coromandel, including Kuaotunu Peninsula, as an area for potential research and identification of sites with high geological, environmental, and cultural values. A geotrail has the potential to tell the story of formation of rhyolitic caldera walls enclosing translucent azure waters framed by white silica sands. Cultural sites are a landscape record giving voice to indigenous Māori that began the human story of adapting to and modifying the landscape. Our premise is that a geotrail offers a more sophisticated experience by weaving together conservation stories, science communication, indigenous history, and local lore. Our goal is to develop a physical and virtual geotrail, complemented by learning and promotional media highlighting the layers of natural and human history, building on a foundation of already published scientific, social, and historical research. Global disruption caused by the current pandemic gives us cause to reflect and consider management of a growing tourism footprint and economic reliance on singular landscapes. We recognise this as an opportunity to reassess a tourism model based on a high-volume of short stay visits to iconic sites.

Geotouristic itineraries are important tools for the dissemination of geosciences because they work as outdoor field classes for teaching about the physical phenomena associated with the landscape in question, including the cultural one. Coastal environments are areas of great geotouristic potential precisely for this natural dynamics that give them its scientific value. The South coast of the State of Paraíba belongs to the geomorphologic unit of Plains and Coastal Tablelands, having direct relation with ancient tectonic movements, generated during the drift of the South American and African Plates, added to Cenozoic tectonic events. This article proposes a geotouristic itinerary that includes seven places of geotouristic interest. As a methodological path, the phases were the bibliographic research about the physical and cultural aspects of the area, an inventory of places of interest and their quantitative assessment. The places of interest are Amor Rock, Tombolo of Coqueirinho, Canyon of Coqueirinho, Cones of Dejection of Coqueirinho, Coqueirinho Structural High, Tambaba Beach and ‘Maceió’ of Mucatu. The existence of interpretative trails assigns a new function, now from the geotouristic point of view, to the itineraries, as they enrich the experience of tourists, to whom is given the opportunity of knowing the abiotic heritage and the cultural heritage from another perspective, apart from enhancing their environmental awareness. The geotouristic itineraries also serve to promote geotourism as an asset, inserting in the traditional tourist context information about the previously forgotten abiotic environment. The 'sun and sea' is the main tourist attraction of the region, allied in a secondary level to a rich history and culture that neglects the latent geotouristic potential. Therefore, mass tourism will be promoted for a niche tourism, becoming more sustainable under the environmental bias.