Cultural Geomorphological Landscapes of the East Sudetes

The chapter focuses on anthropogenic transformation of relief in two subregions of the East Sudetes—the Śnieżnik Massif and the Złote Mountains. They can be considered as representative for the Sudetes, which exemplify a mid-latitude, medium-altitude mountain range distinguished by a high degree of human impactHuman impact on the geomorphological system due to a great variety of economic activities carried out in the past and now. Human impactHuman impact on topography is both direct (anthropogenicErosionanthropogenic landforms and features) and indirect (enhancement and then reduction of soil erosionSoil erosion, channel pattern change, and modification of fluvialFluvial processes). The recent human-induced landscape changes related to the current economic activities such as forestry and tourism co-occur with relic landforms in the depopulated and abandoned areas, which are the legacy of more intense human impactHuman impact in the past. The chapter presents the diversity of anthropic landforms of various age according to their origin related to various economic activities such as agricultureAgriculture, forestry, settlement, miningMining, quarryingQuarry, quarrying, industry, and water management. The section on indirect human impactHuman impact includes a discussion on anthropogenic modification of morphological processes and their record in hillslope and alluvial sediments. Finally, the persistence, values, and promotion of cultural geomorphological landscapes are highlighted.