Definition of the geological heritage in China

In the recent years, UNESCO shows its new trend for the application of the world natural heritages, that is the geological value and ecological value of a heritage are strengthened much more than before. China has a striking diversity in the geological and geomorphological types, and so it is significant for the application for the world heritage to set up the concept of geological heritage and strengthen its research. The concept of geological heritage is drawn based on the related conceptions of natural heritages, geological sites, and geoparks. Thinking of that many cultural heritages in China directly depend on the geological basis also with higher geological value, the paper still clearly brings forward the concept of cultural heritage with geological basis, and treats them as a special kind of geological heritage.EI02249-2574