Acta Geologica 41. (1998)

1. szám - L. Korpás - R. Salas: Preface to the Hungarian-Spanish Intergovernmental S&T Cooperation Programme: Project No. 21. Paleokarst and Raw Materials

MAGYAR OtttJOMÁNYOS AKADÉMIA KÖNYVTARA з it г 2 it з Acta Geologica Hungarica, Vol. 41/1, pp. 1-2 (1998) 302203 to the Hungarian-Spanish Intergovernmental S & T Cooperation Programme: Project No. 21. Paleokarst and Raw Materials Introduction One of the biggest challenges facing our society is the supply of drinking water. The posession of drinking water has become one of the major concerns in many parts of the world. Historically it has been the source of numerous national and international conflicts and future disputes over water supplies cannot be excluded. Hungary and Spain have large resources of subsurface water, thanks to their geology and their favorable geographic and climatic conditions. Given the current imbalance between water resources and quality of drinking water (a direct consequence of industrial pollution and exploitation) there is a pressing need to take steps to ensure supplies of drinking water for future generations. The surface and subsurface paleokarst systems in Hungary and Spain constitute a resource that is of considerable value to the respective populations. In Hungary about 10% of the subsurface paleokarst systems are linked to thermal water resources and approximately 30% to petroleum reserves. All bauxite, limestone and dolomite resources and a substantial part of manganese ores are also related to paleokarst systems. In Spain the Valencia Trough is a Neogene oil-producing basin located in the western Mediterranean, in which the recoverable reserves are estimated at 250 mmbbo. The reservoirs, the oil of which is sourced from Lower Miocene black shales, are made up of karstified and fractured upper Jurassic carbonate rocks. The caves have an extraordinary value in terms of minerals, fossils, flora and fauna. The surface occurrences of these paleokarst systems play a crucial role in the formation of the landscape and in the evolution of the biosphere. Needless to say, these systems are increasingly important to the environment. Consequently, the paleokarst systems enjoy a huge natural potential. Any exploitation of this potential should be carried out taking other resources into consideration so as not to upset the natural balance. Mining, industrialisation and urbanisation have, together with pollution and changes in the climate, resulted in a considerable drop of the karst water table. Therefore, the principal aim of the present studies is to draw attention to the need for protection and to the rehabilitation of the paleokarst aquifer systems. 0236-5278/98/$ 5.00 © 1998 Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest

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