About Us
Cumbria GeoConservation Group (CGC) is a voluntary geological conservation group working to record and look after important geological sites.
Membership comprises not only earth scientists and members of wildlife bodies, but also volunteers with other skills such as project management and data handling. New members are always welcome.
The Cumbria GeoConservation Group is an affiliated member of Geoconservation UK and seeks to:
-
identify new Local Geological Sites in Cumbria
-
monitor and review existing sites
-
promote the educational value of earth science field locations not only for essential teaching but for recreational and for research purposes
-
liaise with other county or regional Geoconservation groups in the UK
-
maintain responsible access to valued sites
Currently there are about 280 recorded sites all of which have been evaluated by our members. Site details are logged with Cumbria Biodiversity Data Centre (CBDC) and are relayed to Cumbria County Council and planning authorities. CGC operates as a special interest group of Cumbria Wildlife Trust.
Examples of Local Geological Sites suitable for inclusion in the Cumbria GeoConservation system include:
-
rocks and soils exposed in quarries, cuttings, stream sections and coastal localities
-
geomorphological features in the landscape such as areas affected by past glaciation and subsequent deposition, ridges and valleys, moorland and floodplain tracts
-
anthropogenic features including former quarrying, mining, tipping and former industrial sites
The sites we have listed and that are shown on the interactive map are ones that are accessible without seeking permission, are on Open Access land or visible from public rights of way. By their very nature some of these sites are in remote areas, open fellside or tidally-flooded shores: wear appropriate clothing and use common sense - safety is your responsibility.
Follow the Countryside Code: Follow the Geological Society guidance
Those sites which we consider are particularly interesting to the general public are shown as red dots on the map and for some of these sites there is a choice between a non-technical ‘leaflet’ (downloadable as a pdf) with further details, a map and a photograph or a ‘site data sheet’ with more geological information for the amateur geologist.
Fossil & mineral collecting code:
Please be aware that it is illegal in the UK to take minerals or fossils from national parks, heritage sites or Local Geological Sites (LGS). You should never collect specimens from scientifically important sites, such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) or LGS.
