The geoconservation and geotourism potential of Northeast Africa and, particularly, Egypt is big, but the
knowledge of geosites of this territory remains limited. Another urgent task is establishment of the
geological heritage of different types. The literature review and the personal field experience permit to
propose several geosites that reflect the geological history of Egypt. These include El-Goza El-Hamra,
Gebel Qatrani and Birqash, Khashm El-Galala, Wadi El-Hitan, Kom El-Shelul, Wadi Araba, Gebel Umm
Bisilla, Maadi Petrified Forest, Dababiya Quarry, and Atud. The noted geosites represent all six main
subtypes (facies, palaeoecological, ichnological, taphonomic, event, and geoarchaeological) of the
palaeogeographical type of the geological heritage. Their rank varies between local and global. The entire
palaeogeographical heritage of Egypt is of international importance. It is argued that three kinds of
geodiversity are linked to this heritage. These are determined by the number of subtypes in the country,
the co-occurrence of subtypes in the geosites, and the combination of the palaeogeographical and other
geological heritage types. The proposed palaeogeographical geosites can be employed successfully for
the purposes of geoconservation and geotourism. Presumably, the importance of archaeological objects
for tourism activities in Egypt may facilitate attractiveness of the palaeogeographical heritage. |
