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The Slovenian climate has undergone significant fluctuations, and an understanding of the past climate is necessary to improve models and recognise long-term patterns. The cryosphere environment, such as ice core samples, provides valuable palaeoclimate data. Palynology and dendroclimatology are also effective ways to study long-term changes in vegetation and reconstruct past climates using pollen and tree proxies. Sediment cores from various locations in Slovenia have been studied to understand past environmental changes. Borehole temperature profiles as well as historical records were also used to reconstruct past climate conditions. Studies have shown specific periods when climatic changes likely played a major role, but a complete timeline of the Slovenian climate throughout the Holocene has not yet been fully developed.

The main challenge of cultural landscapes is how to manage them, and the concept of commons through collective actions can help in this regard. Based on a questionnaire, 21 collective actions related to cultural landscapes in Slovenia were examined using descriptive statistics. Results show that 1) traditional and transforming commons deal with forests and pastures, whereas new ones are more diverse regarding land use but in significantly smaller areas; 2) new commons indicate possible future mechanism, but they do not (yet) have an impact on cultural landscapes; 3) the main benefits of commons refer to social aspects followed by non-material and regulative benefits; material benefits are ranked last; and 4) new collective actions, especially in urban areas, have difficulties obtaining lands which threatens their existence.

The paper aims to provide an overview of the most important parameters (the occurrence, frequency and magnitude) in Vojvodina Region (North Serbia). Monthly and annual mean precipitation values in the period 1946–2014, for the 12 selected meteorological stations were used. Relevant parameters (precipitation amounts, Angot precipitation index) were used as indicators of rainfall erosivity. Rainfall erosivity index was calculated and classified throughout precipitation susceptibility classes liable of triggering soil erosion. Precipitation trends were obtained and analysed by three different statistical approaches. Results indicate that various susceptibility classes are identified within the observed period, with a higher presence of very severe rainfall erosion in June and July. This study could have implications for mitigation strategies oriented towards reduction of soil erosion by water.

Various ice bodies are an important source of paleoenvironmental data, and their study improves the understanding of present and future environmental conditions. Their changes are an important indicator of climate change. This special issue of Acta geographica Slovenica draws attention to the changing and disappearing cryosphere across the globe, with an emphasis on the southeastern Alps, and the necessity to conduct research in this field before the ice disappears forever. This paper briefly summarizes the current body of knowledge on glaciers, permafrost, cave ice, lake and river ice, and snow in the southeastern Alps, and it presents the contribution of Acta geographica Slovenica to this research and the main highlights of all five papers included in this special issue.

The Skuta Glacier in the Kamnik–Savinja Alps (in northern Slovenia) is one of the two remaining glaciers in Slovenia. It is located in a cirque oriented toward the northwest, which shields it from sunlight for most of the year. The glacier lies at an average elevation of 2070m. In recent years, its average area has measured around 1.5 hectares. Monitoring of the glacier has been performed since 1946. In 1962, regular photographing of the glacier with various cameras started from various non-fixed standpoints. Using the single image interactive orientation acquisition method, in which a single photograph is compared with the projection of a modern digital terrain model, seventeen photographs covering the period from 1970 to 2015 were used to acquire the 3D-perimeters of the glacier. The data shows that the elevation of glacier’s upper edge decreased by approximately 40m in the last half-century. Changes in the glacier’s area and average upper edge elevation were compared with average annual temperature and maximum seasonal snow cover depth.

Various geodetic and lidar measurements performed on the Triglav Glacier (Julian Alps, Slovenia) make it possible to study not only the extent of the glacier but also changes in its thickness and volume. These measurements also make it possible to calculate the geodetic mass balance of the glacier. Thickness and volume changes were calculated using glacier area measurements from 1952, 1975, and 1992, and annually between 1999 and 2016. The mean thickness decreased from 39.2m in 1952 to 2.45m in 2012. The maximum thickness decreased from 48.3 m in 1952 to 5.2 m in 2007. The mean specific mass balance was calculated for the area of 1 hectare that the glacier covered in 2016. From 1952 to 2016, the annual specific mass balance was −0.45m w.e.a−1.

The Triglav Glacier in the Julian Alps and the Skuta Glacier in the Kamnik-Savinja Alps are among the south-easternmost glaciers in the Alps. Historical data show that ice masses are undergoing mass loss as the overall climate warms. Glacier ice and cave ice contain a wealth of paleoclimatic information, and rapid sampling is needed if any such information is to be saved before the ice is completely melted. We present the first comprehensive geochemical and water isotope data from glacier ice, meltwater, spring water, and cave ice in the Mount Triglav area and glacier ice from the Skuta Glacier. The samples primarily reflect the initial precipitation signal that has been greatly modified by the input of local CaCO3-rich dust with lesser amounts of marine aerosol and vegetation debris.

Monuments to rulers are, like national holidays, celebrations of the ruling family‘s birthdays, school observances, and various printed, mass-distributed propaganda material, one of the building blocks of power consolidation of the ruling family, and a way of legitimization. This paper presents this phenomenon via public sculptural monuments that were erected to members of the Karađorđević dynasty in the present-day Slovenian territory during the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenians, and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. A review of the material reveals that such monuments were erected only to King Peter I and his son Alexander I, who embodied the military power of the common state on one hand, and the guarantee of a just rule in an age of peace on the other. Commemorative monuments were usually designed relatively modestly, in the form of busts on pedestals, with some extravagant exceptions such as an obelisk, full-figure statue, and an equestrian statue. The locations were carefully selected, usually in town centers or symbolically significant places - primarily by the western and northern border. With the exception of a few fragments, none of the described monuments survived.

Changes in climate, land use, and land management impact the occurrence and severity of wildland fires in many parts of the world. This is particularly evident in Europe, where ongoing changes in land use have strongly modified fire patterns over the last decades. Although satellite data by the European Forest Fire Information System provide large-scale wildland fire statistics across European countries, there is still a crucial need to collect and summarize in-depth local analysis and understanding of the wildland fire condition and associated challenges across Europe. This article aims to provide a general overview of the current wildland fire patterns and challenges as perceived by national representatives, supplemented by national fire statistics (2009–2018) across Europe. For each of the 31 countries included, we present a perspective authored by scientists or practitioners from each respective country, representing a wide range of disciplines and cultural backgrounds. The authors were selected from members of the COST Action “Fire and the Earth System: Science & Society” funded by the European Commission with the aim to share knowledge and improve communication about wildland fire. Where relevant, a brief overview of key studies, particular wildland fire challenges a country is facing, and an overview of notable recent fire events are also presented. Key perceived challenges included (1) the lack of consistent and detailed records for wildland fire events, within and across countries, (2) an increase in wildland fires that pose a risk to properties and human life due to high population densities and sprawl into forested regions, and (3) the view that, irrespective of changes in management, climate change is likely to increase the frequency and impact of wildland fires in the coming decades. Addressing challenge (1) will not only be valuable in advancing national and pan-European wildland fire management strategies, but also in evaluating perceptions (2) and (3) against more robust quantitative evidence.

In the second half of the 19th century, Slovenian mountains became increasingly popular. By strengthening the bourgeoisie and the industrial society, more and more people had time (“leisure time”) to visit the mountains. This was, however, also the time after the Spring of Nations (1848), when slovenianism is affirmed and national aspirations become realized. By mountaineering, national aspirations were moved from towns to high mountains and were particularly evident in the form of a competition to conquer the summits, build trails and huts. Mountaineering became a tool for a symbolical conquest of mountains. One could say that it was a race of “marking” the mountains. The central area of this competition were the Julian Alps, particularly their central part, the Triglav mountain range. From the last quarter of the 19th century, the “marking” champions were the main two German organizations (present in Slovenian territory through their branches since 1874), the German-Austrian Alpine Society (DÖAV), and the Austrian Tourist Club (ÖTC). Together they developed a network of shelters and mountain trails that were marked exclusively with German inscriptions (signboards, hut names, etc.). Towards the end of the 19th century (1893), the Slovenes founded their own Slovene Mountaineering Society (SPD) as well, resisting the German branding. By using Slovenian names, constructing trails and employing a different way of marking them, and building Slovenian huts, they wanted to prevent the Germans from conquering the mountains they deemed Slovene. A race in constructing the alpine infrastructure started, which eventually turned into arguments. The latter included destruction of property, as well as physical confrontations, which were later called “the battle for the mountains”. The greatest success of the Slovenian side was the purchase of the Triglav summit (1895), where the priest Jakob Aljaž built a tower - the highest Slovenian marking.

Using a uniform methodology, we explored cartographic elements on almost sixty medium-scale maps showing Slovenian territory from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries. One of the elements examined was also borders, which are very fragmented due to the great landscape diversity of Slovenia. We were interested in how borders in different periods follow the natural boundaries of the landscape and how they are cartographically represented. Lines and shapes were mostly used to display the borders. Shaded areas are more common. They are usually colored or patterned. Lines are more effective. Typically, there are different types, varying in shape, thickness, and color. Only a dozen of the maps examined lack borders. Two-thirds of the maps highlight the borders with a color.

Many countries around the world are facing increasing impacts of natural disasters. This is primarily attributed to climate change, accompanied by an increase in the intensity of meteorological and hydro-geomorphological natural hazards. However, is climate change really responsible for this increased damage and low resilience, or should the cause be sought elsewhere? Based on the case of Slovenia, it is shown that social irresponsibility (e.g., inadequate spatial planning, lack of supervision, insufficient insurance policies, and a mix of politics and capital influences) could be a factor more responsible than climate change for the “catastrophic” consequences of natural disasters.

This paper presents an analysis of data on damage caused by natural disasters in Slovenia. The data were systematically collected by the Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia from 1991 to 2008 for fourteen categories of disasters: earthquakes, floods, fires, drought, windstorms, hail, frost, glaze, landslides and avalanches, epidemics, epizootics, damage caused by various pests and diseases, ecological disasters, and other natural disasters. Data by statistical regions (NUTS 3) are available for 1992 to 2008, and data by municipalities (LAU 2) and administrative units (LAU 1) are available for 1992 to 2005. Analysis of the data shows that from 1991 to 2008 direct damage caused by natural disasters amounted to an average of 0.48% of annual GDP, or an average of €45 per capita a year.

The annual trends of surface mean monthly air temperature and monthly extreme temperatures were analyzed from ten meteorological stations in Kosovo. The data refer to observation periods between 1949 and 1999 for four stations, and observation periods between 1965 and 1999 for the remaining six stations. Trends were analyzed for nine time series. Positive trends were found in six series, and negative trends were found in three series. After an assessment of these trends using the Mann–Kendall test, positive trends were confirmed in four series, a negative trend was confirmed in one series, and in one series there was no trend, whereas trends were characterized as slightly positive in two time series and slightly negative in one series.

A normalized difference vegetation index provides local forest managers with much essential annual information about the forest inventory. This article evaluates the possible use of NDVI and CORINE Land Cover databases for better forest management in the municipalities of Kursumlija and Topola in Serbia. The forest areas obtained using CLC were up to 11.5% larger than the official forest area estimates, whereas NDVI gave more precise results. This is of a crucial importance for preventing illegal logging, which is very prevalent in southern Serbian municipalities, which have substantial forested territory. NDVI is very promising for Serbia and also for countries that rarely carry out national forest inventories. This method can also easily be applied to other Balkan countries with a similar situation regarding local forest management.

Three very small Alpine glaciers in the Julian Alps are presented: the Eastern and the Western Canin glaciers in Italy and the Triglav glacier in Slovenia. The history of measurements using a measuring tape and via geodetic means on Canin glaciers is presented in brief; the majority of the paper deals with the acquisition of glacier boundaries from archive non-metrical images. The acquisition is based on interactive orientation method (mono-plotting) using lidar DTM. Seven archive non-metrical images of Mount Canin from 1893 to the mid-1970s and two aero-photogrametric images from periodic aerial photogrammetric surveys of Slovenia from 2000 and 2011 were used to determine the glaciers’ areas. In addition, a map of Canin glaciers from 1908 was geo-referenced. Five archive non-metrical images of Triglav glacier from 1897 to 1962 were used to determine the glacier area. Problems with obstructed areas are presented, and possible solutions are also given for deriving areas behind the obstructions. The usefulness of archival imagery for long-time monitoring of glaciers is presented, and the importance of old mountaineering publications as a source of such images is emphasized.

Cave ice samples collected within karstic terrain have major ion and nutrient concentrations showing that the ice originates from local precipitation modified by the addition of Ca2+ and HCO3− from the dissolution of the local bedrock. Isotopic profiles of Paradana Cave ice are similar to those described in other ice caves in central and eastern Europe, where the profiles are developed through the freezing of cave pool or “lake„ waters from the top downward during the onset of the cold portion of the year. Stable isotope data suggest future studies may yield a long-term paleo-environmental record for this location.

Anthropogenic influence on weather has been increasingly published and discussed in the last decades. Climate changes caused by inadvertent anthropogenic influence are well underway. Hail suppression, which has been proven to have no influence on weather, will be considered in the article. Even though hail suppression as scientifically ungrounded activity seemed to promise certain success several decades ago, it has spread over the whole territory of the Republic of Serbia after abundant experience, when many developed countries have given up on this activity. Reasons will be presented for the senselessness of hail suppression based on the latest research. By processing all hail data from the territory of Serbia in the period from 1967 to 2010, it was found out that the hail trend is rising which is in contrary to expectations and previous claims that hail suppression decreases hail frequency.

The Triglav glacier is situated in the Julian Alps in the northwest of Slovenia. Presented are the results of investigations and measurements of the Triglav glacier done between the years 1999 and 2012. It was for the first time during this period that its depth was measured by means of georadar. Its area was measured on a yearly basis by means of various land surveying methods which are stated in detail. We explained the dynamics of the glacier’s shrinking on the grounds of weather conditions of each respective year. Due to the glacier’s concave form, snow in the past few years remained all until the late summer, particularly in the central and lower sections of the glacier. If such weather conditions continue, and the amount of winter precipitation further increases, the remainder of the Triglav glacier, though small in size, will continue to exist for a few years.

In his long career as a researcher, Ivan Gams was focused mainly on karstology, although he contributed significantly to physical geography and geography of natural hazards as well. These topics are central to more than 80% of Gams's scientific and professional articles. Since Gams wrote more than 150 scientific articles in just a few decades, he is considered one of the most important Slovenian physical geographers, and rightly so. He was also the pioneer of studying natural hazards by means of modern geographical methods.

The paper discusses the definitions of natural disasters and recommends the implementation of definitions and classifications of natural disasters in accordance with those decreed at the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) and Munich Re insurance Company (Munich RE) for administrative use in the Republic of Serbia. For the Republic of Serbia, the issue of natural disasters is presented both through government documents (e.g. the Law on Emergencies and the National Strategy of the Protection and Rescue in Emergencies) and the survey of the frequency and typology of disasters. Significant discrepancies exist between older and more contemporary classifications of disasters in Serbia. They are especially emphasized in comparison to the CRED and Munich RE classifications and databases. This causes problems in the monitoring, recording and assessment of the effects of natural disasters. It is proposed that definitions be adapted and implemented into legislative and other documents.

A recent forest fire in the Republic of Serbia is discussed concerning classification, legislative framework and fire management, giving a detailed analysis of the forest fire occurrence. Analysing past and predicting future fires are crucial for policy development and forest management practices to prevent and mitigate fires. Fire hazard is discussed through several fire protection and prevention legislative documents. The nonparametric Mann-Kendall test was used to analyse resent forest fire data in an attempt to find causality in occurrences and frequency. The meteorological data and fire statistics provided by the Serbian Hydro-meteorological Service and the Ministry of Interior/Sector for Emergency Management of the Republic of Serbia were used to calculate the Forest Fire Weather Indices, along with deficit or surplus of precipitation for the case study of Tara Mountain. The paper highlights the need for better hierarchical classification of fire hazards and its harmonisation along with standardisations presented by leading international research institutions. A significant correlation between meteorological parameters and forest fire occurrence was found. This opens a possibility for further investigation and analysis of geophysical and anthropogenic driven factors that can influence disaster occurrence.

At the beginning of the twenty-first century, Bojan Erhartič had a strong impact on Slovenian geography because he placed it on the map of countries where geographers deal with geomorphological heritage. He began his research path into the world of natural heritage with the study of geography. After receiving his bachelor’s degree, he turned his attention to studying geodiversity, and this led him to issues concerning the evaluation of geomorphological heritage, especially in mountainous areas. Erhartič was among the first in Slovenian geography to deal with the aesthetic evaluation of geomorphological heritage. His interest in the “beauty of nature” stemmed from many years of planned work in (geographical) photography. The Anton Melik Geographical Institute of the Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts holds approximately 218,000 of his “geographical” photos, which he took during his many travels in more than forty countries on five continents.

Leta 2010 so zaradi obilnih padavin med 16. in 19. septembrom Slovenijo zajele velike poplave. Za evidentiranje njihovega obsega so na Geografskem inštitutu Antona Melika ZRC SAZU 20. septembra 2010 izvedli terestrično snemanje s Sv. Ane nad Podpečjo, 23. septembra 2010 pa še ročno snemanje iz helikopterja. Posneta so bila poplavljena območja na Ljubljanskem barju, Radenskem polju in Dobrepolju. Terestrično snemanje je bilo izvedeno, ko so bile poplave na Ljubljanskem barju najobsežnejše, snemanje iz helikopterja pa nekaj dni kasneje, ko so že upadale. V članku je predstavljena obdelava posnetkov, ki prikazujejo poplave na Ljubljanskem barju. Snemanje je potekalo z različnimi nemerskimi fotoaparati, v prispevku pa bo podrobneje obravnavana obdelava posnetkov, narejenih z nemerskim fotoaparatom Cannon PowerShot SX10 IS. Fotoaparat je bil naknadno kalibriran, vendar rezultatov kalibracije ne moremo neposredno uporabiti, saj ne vemo, kako je bil fotoaparat nastavljen med snemanjem.Rob poplavljenega območja je bil izmerjen z interaktivno metodo orientacije posnetka na podlagi DMR. Metoda je enoslikovna in omogoča zajem 3R-podatkov že z enega samega posnetka. V članku primerjamo rezultate interaktivne orientacije, pridobljene na podlagi fotogrametrično izdelanega DMR 5 m x 5 m in lidarskih podatkov. Ovrednotena je uporabnost navedenih podatkov za 3R-zajem obsega poplav z interaktivno metodo orientacije ; In September 2010, one of the greatest floods in recent decades affected Slovenia, following intense rain between September 16th and 19th. Members of the Anton Melik Geographical Institute of the Scientific Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts made their first terrestrial oblique imaging of the floods on Ljubljansko Barje (the Ljubljana moor) from Sv. Ana hill over Podpeč on the September 20th, 2010. The floods on the Ljubljana moor, Radensko polje and Dobrepolje were later also covered with handheld imaging made from helicopter on September 23rd, 2010. Terrestrial imaging was made in the time of the highest waters and the imaging from helicopter when the floods were retreating. The floods on Ljubljana moor around Podpeč are presented. Images made with the Canon PowerShot SX10 IS non-metric camera were used. The camera was calibrated afterwards, but the calibration data could not be used directly due to not knowing the parameters of zoom in the time of imaging.The flooding boundary was measured from the non-metric images with the interactive orientation of image on the DEM. The results of interactive orientation of non-metric images made with the photogrammetrically derived DEM with a cell size of 5 m × 5 m and LiDAR derived DEM with a cell size of 1 m × 1 m are presented. The evaluation of the method for the 3D data acquisition is also made.

In the last century and a half, average summer temperatures have slowly been rising worldwide. The most observable consequence of this is the change in glacier sizes. For monitoring glacier area and volume, various measuring techniques exist—from measurements with a measuring tape and geodetic measurements to remote sensing and photogrammetry. A comparison of different measuring techniques on twoSlovenian glaciers (the Triglav and Skuta glaciers) and two Austrian glaciers (the Gossnitzkees and Hornkees glaciers) is made. A long-term glacial retreat trend is presented for the Gossnitzkees, Hornkees, and Triglav glaciers because these glaciers can be monitoredthroughout the entire twentieth century by means of archival data. Despite their different sizes, the annual trend of glacial retreat was approximately the same in the period between 1929 and 2006 ; V zadnjem stoletju in pol se globalne povprečne letne temperature stalno dvigajo. Ena od vidnih posledic tega je spreminjanje velikosti ledenikov. Za spremljanje površinskih in prostorninskih sprememb ledenikov obstajajo številne metode, od meritev z merskim trakom, klasičnih geodetskih izmer do daljinskega zaznavanja in fotogrametrije. Uporaba nekaterih je predstavljena na dveh slovenskih (Triglavski ledenik, Ledenik pod Skuto) in dveh avstrijskih ledenikih (Gossnitzkees in Hornkees). Predstavljen je tudi dolgoročen trend zmanjševanja ledenikov Gossnitzkees, Hornkees in Triglavskega ledenika, ki ga na podlagi različnih arhivskih podatkov lahkospremljamo že od začetka 20. stoletja. Čeprav so obravnavani ledeniki različno veliki, izkazujejo primerljiv letni trend zmanjševanja v obdobju med letoma 1929 in 2006.

This study deals with geomorphological natural features (geomorphosites) relative to the natural processes that create, shape, or destroy such features. As a rule, geomorphologic processes are geographical constants in the landscape although some, due to their high magnitude or low frequency of occurrence, can be seen as an exception (e.g., natural disasters). The importance of geomorphosites is relative to their size, rarity (spatial distribution), and duration (existence in time), which depend on both the frequency and magnitude of geomorphological processes and on the standards of the observer. Human influence and perception of geomorphosites is also important in this regard.

This paper describes the damage caused by natural disasters in Slovenia and around the world between 1995 and 2010. The fundamental purpose of the article is to present damage caused by different natural hazards in Slovenia and abroad together with the analysis of the amount of damage caused by natural disasters together and a discussion on the comparability of data. Described is the damage caused by earthquakes, floods, fires, droughts, strong winds, hail, frost and ice, and landslides and avalanches. From the analyzed material on the amount of damage we can evaluate the financial importance of prevention, which is be a key activity in the field of protection against natural disasters.

This article is a continuation of the article on soil erosion in submediterranean Slovene Istria from the first issue of the 2009 (49-1) journal. In this article we present geomorphic processes in the badlands of the same area (Dragonja River basin, SW Slovenia): sediment production from steep bare (Eocene) flysch slopes (rockwall retreat), movements of flysch debris along erosion gullies, and geomorphic processes on talus slopes. Sediment production of flysch rocks was determined by measurements on erosion plots and totals around 80 kg/m2 per year on average, which means that steep bare flysch rockwalls retreat at a speed of 35 to 50 mm per year. The badlands not only contain flysch walls but also slopes already eroded by erosion rills and gullies. A dam in one of the erosion gullies with the catchment area of 0.1 ha captured 20 tons of debris in fourteen months. Monitoring on talus slopes of the badlands revealed their dual character because erosion here alternates with accumulation.

From the end of nineties of the 20th century, intense hydrologic and geomorphologic research is taking place in the Slovene Istria. As a part of this research also studies on soil erosion were undertaken in the period from 2005 to 2008. The field measurements were under taken onclosed 1m2 large erosion plots under three different land uses (on bare soils in an olive grove, on an overgrown meadow, in a forest), placed south of the Marezige village in the Rokava River basin.We show weekly measurements of surface erosion (interrill erosion) for the period of 13 months (the end of March 2005 – the end of April 2006), as well as monthly and seasonal averages together with selected linear statistical correlations between soil erosion and weather parameters.From May 2005 to April 2006 the interrill erosion on bare soils in an olive grove with an inclination of 5.5° amounted to 9013 g/m2 (90 t/ha) that corresponds to surface lowering rate of 8.5 mm/yr; on an overgrown meadow with an inclination of 9.4° it amounted to 168 g/m2 (1,68 t/ha) that corresponds to surface lowering rate of 0.16 mm//yr; and in a forest with an inclination of 7.8° it amounted to 391 g/m2 (3,91 t/ha) and in a forest with an inclination of 21.4° it amounted to 415 g/m2 (4,15 t/ha), respectively, that corresponds to surface lowering rate of 0.4 mm/yr.

Steep bare rocky slopes that are badlands at the same time, are a morphogenetic particularity of the flyschpart of the Istrian Peninsula. On them, microrelief forms are of a short life cycle, since erosion processes are fast. On the basis of measurements of sediment production in flysch rocks on fourerosion plots in the Rokava watershed situated south of the village of Marezige, we show in this paper how fast these processes are. The annual sedimentproduction in flysch rocks is on average around 80kg/m2, which means that the slope retreat rate is about 35 mm/year.Further more, weekly measurements of sediment production in flysch rockf or the period of 15 months(from February 2005 till April 2006) are shown, as well as weekly and seasonal averages. Linear statistical correlations between sediment production in flysch rocks and weather conditions are also presented.

Predstavljene so meritve erozijsko-denudacijskih procesov v porečju Dragonje. Meritve so obsegale površinsko spiranje na treh različnih rabah tal, umikanje strmih golih flišnih pobočij, premikanje gradiva po erozijskem jarku in kemično denudacijo v porečju. Meritve so potekale od februarja 2005 do maja 2006. Namen članka je opozoriti na hitrost nekaterih geomorfnih procesov, zaradi katere bi bilo treba bolj poudariti njihov pomen pri oblikotvornosti površja.

Na primeru Goriških brd predstavljamo deterministično in probabilistično metodo za izdelavo zemljevidov plazovitosti oziroma procesnih geomorfoloških zemljevidov za zemeljske plazove. Deterministični zemljevid plazovitosti smo izdelali z metodo ponderiranja, za probabilistični zemljevid pa smo uporabili Dempster-Shaferjev algoritem. Deterministične metode so enostavnejše in hitrejše za izdelavo, vendar tudi manj natančne od probabilističnih. V članku je predstavljena primerjava obeh metod.

Applicability of geomorphological knowledge for prevention against some natural disasters, also known as geomorphological disasters, is presented. Some home and foreign experience of applicability of this knowledge are introduced. It is known that the ratio between means put into sanitation of, for example, landslides and savings with prevention measures, are from 1:10 to 1:2.000. The use of geomorpholgical knowledge and corresponding cartographic works in Slovene spatial planning legislation is defined, but it is not carried out consistently. We recommend municipalities and spatial planners that they should also take in account geomorphic processes and characteristic of the relief.

V članku predstavljamo uporabnost geomorfološkega znanja za preventivo pred nekaterimi naravnimi nesrečami, ki jih imenujemo tudi geomorfološke nesreče. Opisujemo domače in tuje izkušnje pri aplikaciji tovrstnega geomorfološkega znanja. Znano je, da razmerje med sredstvi, vloženimi v sanacijo zemeljskih plazov, in prihranki zaradi preventive ponekod znaša od 1:10 do celo 1:2000. Uporaba geomorfološkega znanja in ustreznih kartografskih podlag pri prostorskem planiranju je v Sloveniji sicer opredeljena v zakonodaji, a se ne izvaja dosledno. Naročnikom (občinam) in izvajalcem (izdelovalcem planov) v prispevku predlagamo, da pri načrtovanju razvoja prostora bolj upoštevajo geomorfne procese in značilnosti reliefa.

The article describes soil erosion in Slovenia. There is little concrete data on soil erosion due to the lack of awareness of this process and the fragmentation of farmland. Long-term measurements of soil erosion have only been done at one location; elsewhere, there have only been short observations and calculations and modeling on the basis of empirical equations. To increase our knowledge of this phenomenon, we took measurements of soil erosion on a field in the Besnica Valley northwest of Kranj. With the decrease of agricultural land use in Slovenia due to natural, social, and economic factors, the amount of material lost to erosion has decreased in the last few decades. For protection from erosion, various preventive methods such as terracing, mulching, and contour plowing are employed. The awareness that protection against erosion is a demanding and long-term task is gradually increasing, but nothing can replace the soil that has been lost due to erosion.

The article presents two deterministic methods for the elaboration of landslide and rock-fall source area maps and, considering human activity in the landscape, for the elaboration of landslide and rockfall risk maps. Risk maps are one of the fundamental bases for protection against natural disasters since they illustrate the risks to areas of human activity due to various natural processes. Using the weighting method and for the first time the matrix method, we established the extent of land-slide and rockfall source areas in the Upper Savinja Valley and the risk due to these processes relative to settlement, roads, land use, and rivers and streams. The methodology for elaborating maps using both approaches is described in detail as well as the differ-ences between them. The basic purpose of risk maps is to direct human encroachment in the landscape to safe areas.

The complete drying out of the Aral and Caspian seas, as isolated continental water bodies, and their potential impact on the climate and environment is examined with numerical simulations. Simulations use the atmospheric general circulation model (ECHAM5) as well as the hydrological discharge (HD) model of the Max-Planck-Institut für Meteorologie. The dry out is represented by replacing the water surfaces in both of the seas with land surfaces. New land surface elevation is lower, but not lover than 50 m from the present mean sea level. Other parameters in the model remain unchanged. The initial meteorological data is real; starting with January 1, 1989 and lasting until December 31, 1991. The final results were analyzed only for the second, as the first year of simulation was used for the model spinning up. The drying out of both seas leads to an increase in land surface and average monthly air temperature during the summer, and a decrease of land surface and average monthly air temperature during the winter, above the Caspian Sea. The greatest difference in temperature between dry and not dry cases have the same values, about 7–8 °C in both seasons, while daily extremes of temperature are much more pronounced. In the wider local/regional area, close to both seas, drying out leads to a difference in average annual temperatures by about 1 °C. On a global scale, the average annual temperature remains unchanged and the configuration of the isotherms remain unchanged, except for over some of the continents. In winter, Central Asia becomes cooler, while over Australia, southern Africa, and South America, it becomes slightly less warm. Furthermore, a new heat island occurs in western Sahara during summer.

Along with flash floods, landslides are one of the most widespread and damaging natural hazards in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This paper determines areas susceptible to landslides in the Municipality of Banja Luka (Republika Srpska, northwest Bosnia and Herzegovina). Based on a terrain survey in a 55.4 km2 area, 216 landslides were identified with a total area of 2.9 km2 or 5.2% of the municipality. According to landslide susceptibility modeling, low susceptibility is present from one-quarter to one-half of the territory and very high susceptibility is present from several percentages up to one-third of the territory, depending on the model used. The results may support government mitigation programs and help in developing a landslide hazard and risk assessment model for the area.

This study identifies factors that affect the speed of rockwall retreat of flysch cliffs between Kane Point and Strunjan on the Slovenian coast. Individual factors were combined in a geographical information system with mapped recent erosion features. The results indicate the influence of individual factors on the formation of erosion rills, gullies, surfwave breaks, slumps, and rockfalls; that is, flysch coast retreat processes. Special attention is dedicated to the occurrence of major slope processes, specifically slumps and rockfalls, which are an important contributing factor in cliff retreat. The article also presents the threat to individual sections of coast due to rockfalls and slumps.

Acta geographica Slovenica is a research journal for geography and related disciplines published by the Anton Melik Geographical Institute of Scientific Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts. It has been published since 1952 and is the second-oldest Slovenian geographical journal. Volume 50 was published in 2010, and this article is dedicated to this special anniversary. The journal was only published occasionally until 1976, when the volume 14 appeared, but afterwards it began to be published annually, with two volumes a year since 2003 (volume 43). With volume 43, the journal was included in Science Citation Index Expanded (SCIE). Since 2010, it has also had an impact factor. For 2009, this factor was 0.714, which ranks the journal in third place among all indexed Slovenian journals. In all the volumes, a total of 273 research articles have been published on more than 12,000 pages; half of these articles were written by the institute members.

In 2005 and 2006 intensive measurements were made of various erosion-denudation processes in the Dragonja River basin. The measurements included geomorphic processes in the badlands: the rockwall retreat of steep bare flysch slopes, movements of flysch debris along erosion gullies, and geomorphic processes on talus slopes. At the same time, measurements of soil erosion were made in three different land use areas: bare soil in an olive grove, an overgrown meadow, and a forest. The results are presented in two parts. Part One presents the measurements of soil erosion, and Part Two in the next issue of the journal (No. 49-2) will present geomorphic processes in the badlands. The measurements of soil erosion made on one-meter-square closed erosion plots south of the village of Marezige revealed that the greater part of the annual erosion was caused by only a few major erosion events. Between May 2005 and April 2006, interrill erosion amounted to 9,013 g/m2 (90 t/ha) on bare soil in an olive grove with an inclination of 5.5º and an average weekly proportion of specific runoff of 23%, 168 g/m2 (1.68 t/ha) on an overgrown meadow with an inclination of 9.4º and an average weekly proportion of specific runoff of 8%, and 391 g/m2 (3.91 t/ha) in a forest with an inclination of 7.8º and 415 g/m2 (4.15 t/ha) in a forest with an inclination of 21.4º with an average weekly proportion of specific runoff of 6% regardless of the inclination. The amount of precipitation during the reference year was slightly below the long-term average.

In this journal, the authors (Zorn, Komac 2004) previously described the use of two deterministic methods for establishing the possibility of landsliding. This time, they take a step forward and using the example of the flysch Goriška Brda hills present the probability modelling of landslide hazard. In probability methods, the intensity and distribution of the processes are established by comparing indirectly determined landscape elements and the actual situation, while in deterministic methods, subjective decisions have an impact on the result. We have elaborated a probability map for landslides with a fixed return period using the Dempster-Shafer method on the basis of the data on 800 landslides that occurred with intensive precipitation in the fall of 1998.