Heritage

The "heritage" sector is a department of the SISKA dedicated to the documentation and protection of karstic heritage. Projects in this area draw on the knowledge and skills of SISKA staff in site remediation, biospeleology and geoheritage.

There are many unauthorised dumps in karstic terrain (chasms, caves and dolines). This waste is in direct contact with the groundwater, which can have consequences for the quality of drinking water. From the point of view of nature conservation, the presence of waste sometimes has a significant impact on the state of conservation of these particular geological sites.

Numerous analyses have shown that these old deposits are dangerous, with high levels of heavy metals. The SISKA set up clean-up campaigns in several cantons (VD, NE, VS, JU, BE). Over the past 20 years, more than 200 sites have already been cleaned up.

The biospeleology platform is a link between cavers interested in underground fauna and specialists in different groups of underground organisms. It enables discoveries likely to provide new or important information in terms of habitats and biogeography to be passed on to interested researchers. By acting as a relay, the platform helps to prevent the loss of information about the underground environment. It is also a link to the specialist services in the cantons and to those responsible for geotope protection.

The platform's activities are supported by the Scientific Speleology Commission of the Swiss Academy of Natural Sciences (scnat) and are part of the national programme for the conservation of speleological and karst heritage supported by the FOEN.

The SISKA is responsible for carrying out inventories of karstic sites (sinkholes, dolines, lapies), geo-heritage assessments and site management proposals (remediation, protection, enhancement).

For relatively complex or major projects in karstic environments, we can use our experience to assess their feasibility and reduce their potential impact on the environment. In particular, we deal with impacts on groundwater, subterranean fauna, the subterranean climate and the karstic landscape.