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Australia’s Geoheritage: History of Study, A New Inventory of Geosites and Applications to Geotourism and Geoparks

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Abstract

Databases of geosites for the continent of Australia provide an inventory covering key sites and terrains on the Australian mainland, Tasmania and Australian territories and islands. The inventory is based on an early listing by Cochrane and Joyce (1986), a short list prepared for the Global Indicative List of Geological Sites (GILGES) and UNESCO by Joyce (1991), a revised GILGES list published in Cowie (1991), discussions in Joyce (1994a, b and 1995b), the Australian Heritage Commission’s Register of the National Estate and, most recently, an independent review of earlier work for the Australian Heritage Commission by Yeates (2001a, b). The Geological Society of Australia has had a major involvement for over 50 years in developing this inventory, and many geological sites are listed on the Register of the National Estate. Other groups that have been involved are the Australia Government’s geological survey, state government geological surveys and departments of environment and conservation, including forestry groups in Tasmania and also the Australian Government’s World Heritage section. Locating and listing these databases, developing them further and making them available via the Internet will assist in the future development of geotourism and geoparks in Australia.

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Acknowledgements

I wish to thank Dr Charles Lawrence for his useful comments on the paper and the anonymous referees for their helpful comments and suggestions, including detailed editing of the initial submission. From a presentation at the ProGeo meeting in Braga, Portugal, in 2005, this paper has developed over 4 years, drawing on further presentations and discussions at several Australian and overseas conferences, including the Inaugural Global Geotourism Conference, ‘Discover The Earth Beneath Our Feet,’ Fremantle, Western Australia, 17–20 August 2008. My involvement in the nomination and acceptance of the new Kanawinka Geopark (Joyce 2006d) has also helped me to understand the importance of geotourism and geoparks in Australia. Finally, I thank the many workers in geological heritage in Australia, both in the GSA and in government organisations, who, during the past 40 years, have influenced my ideas.

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  1. School of Earth Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Australia

    Edmund Bernard Joyce

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Correspondence to Edmund Bernard Joyce.

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Joyce, E.B. Australia’s Geoheritage: History of Study, A New Inventory of Geosites and Applications to Geotourism and Geoparks. Geoheritage 2, 39–56 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-010-0011-z

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