Contribution of public Geological Survey to prevention and mitigation of geohazards

Abstract

From the early history of civilisation societies have been exposed to external factors. Probably no other factors have influenced the development of societies and cultures more than geologically driven hazards or geohazards. With the evolvement of societies also the approaches to solving problems, related to geohazard, have developed. The complexity of mitigation and response measurements that tackle the contemporary geohazard problems demands a long-term strategic approach that has to incorporate all segments of the society, from stake-holders and end-user groups to the experts. The management of geohazards is a public good and as such needs to be governed by a non-profit public body. The common mission of almost all geological surveys is to gather, manage and interpret geologically related data for a wider public welfare. Geological surveys as public institutions represent a key role in almost all components of the geohazard management process, from education and research, to data acquisition, processing, interpretation and decision support issues. With its knowledge regarding natural processes gathered through decades GSO offers reliable and independent support in assessing and describing the phenomena (seismic activities, mass wasting, water and soil pollution, excess or lack of trace elements in the soil, ground subsidence or heave, gaseous emanations and more), understanding the processes of activation, dynamics, transport, interaction with media and living organisms, and predicting the possible scenarios in the future with emphasis on human exposure to given phenomena. Despite the fact that the value of the knowledge of the dynamic environment we live in is being tested literally on daily basis in Slovenia, its inclusion in everyday practice is still relatively negligible.