Carpathian Journal of Earth and Environmental Sciences

The concept of geoheritage in general and hydrological heritage as its segment is reflected in representative examples of geodiversity - geoheritage sites. Accordingly, the issue of the identification of such extraordinary parts of the geographic mantle is one of the most important problems in this complex area of study. Assuming the universal value of water and water phenomena that result from specific characteristics, this study seeks to present and explain a theoretical pathway from an investigated water phenomenon to a concrete hydrological heritage site by stressing the importance of establishing the appropriate evaluation criteria; this pathway is necessary in order to reply the fundamental question: whether and why the observed water phenomenon does (or does not) merit the status of a hydrological heritage site. The research has resulted in universal theoretical model for the identification of hydrological heritage, which has a practical significance not only in this field, but in the identification of other types of geoheritage as well.