PROTOKOL OF PALEOPEDOLOGY COMMISSION BUSINESS MEETING

at Paleopedology Symposium., September 26, 1997, University of Giessen, Rauischholzhausen, Germany

Chairman: President Arnt Bronger.

Present: 51 members

Report from the secretary

The Paleopedology Commission was formed at the 1965 INQUA Congress, and since 1968 has been affiliated to the Soil Genesis, Classification and Cartography Commission of the International Society of Soil Science (ISSS) and since 1990 to the Stratigraphy Commission of the International Union of Geological Sciences. These links reflect the increasingly multidisciplinary activity of the Commission's work in relation to the genesis and Quaternary history of non-buried soils and the recognition and interpretation of pre-Quaternary paleosols.

The Commission now has more than 230 corresponding members spread among these three international unions. Some attend the Congresses of all three, which leaves only one year in four available for major Inter-Congress symposia of the Commission. However, many also attend Inter-Congress meetings organised jointly with other INQUA or ISSS Commissions.

The commission is fostering the development of an electronic audience. Paleosol electronic mailing list was establish in 1996 for those, who reported their e-mail addresses. There are currently 130 subscribers of this mailing list with their amount continuously growing. To subscribe one need to send an e-mail message with a single line "subscribe paleosol" to the address: majordomo@fadr.msu.ru.

The commission continue to develop it's web-site at: http://www.fadr.msu.ru/inqua with the the amount of hits varying between 600 to 1000 per month. The following information is available:

The structure of Paleopedology Commission with the list of Working Groups

Circulars of forthcoming inter-congress meeting

An archive of Commission Newsletters since NL-8.

Announcements

An updated list of Commission members.

Links to related sites.

We are ready to start electronic publications on the Web. The instructions for authors are available at our home-page.

Report from working group on definitons, used in paleopedology

Chairman of the Working Group J. Catt described the current status of Paleopedology Glossary. The second draft (see p. ) was compiled with respect to comments, made by Commission members. The development of Paleopedology Glossary would be further discussed during XV INQUA Congress in Durban, RSA, 1999.

Report from the working group on classification of paleosols

A discussion took place, basing on invited presentation of a Working Group Chairman W.D. Nettleton. It was decided to continue to develop alternative approach to classification of paleosols with a follow-up discussions during Paleopedology Commission Symposium in Langhou, China, 1998 and XV INQUA Congress in Durban, South Africa.

Report from the working group on paleosols and paleoclimatic change in eastern and central Asia (PPCECA)

Chairman X.M. Fang made a report of Working Group activity for the last two years, starting form XIV INQUA Congress in Berlin, when the Group had been formed. The activity included Conference on Soils and Geology in Harbin, China, 1996 (see report in Newsletter 13), INQUA funded Project and preparation of Paleopedology Commission International Symposium and Field Workshop on Paleosols and Climatic Change (Langhou, China, July 27-August 7, 1998). The Symposium Scientific Program and Field Trips were discussed with the Second Circular as a result (see p.)

PPCECA web-site is also available at: http://www-geol.unine.ch/S-QUAT/PPCECA_Proposals.html.

Paleopedology Commission Symposium and Workshops during the XV INQUA CONGRESS (Aug 3-11, 1999, Durban, RSA).

The INQUA executive have proposed that every Scientific Commission and Committee can propose at least one really attractive symposium for the Congress.

The format will probably be 9-10.30, 11-12.30 and the Program Committee suggest that this could be planned for 6 + 6 15-minute talks (or fewer longer talks). It is also possible to make proposals for half-morning symposia (1 1/2 hours), or give

subtitles for the two halves.

The afternoons will be devoted to poster sessions, with a plenary lecture to end the day, but rooms will be available for workshops which commissions may also propose.

In responce to request of the Program Committee the following list of Paleopedology Commission Symposium and workshops at the XY INQUA congress was proposed:

The main Commission symposium:

"Paleosol sequence as evidence of long and short term climatic cycles". Proposed Chair: A. Bronger, A. Makeev.

Afternoon workshops:

-Classification of Paleosols and Paleopedology Glossary

Chair: J. Catt

- Biological indicators in Paleosols and their climatic evidence

Chair: B. Urban

Workshop on discussing poster presentations.

More detailed information is available on main INQUA web-site at: http://www.inqua.nlh.no.

Publication of Paleopedology Symposium papers

It was announced, that papers from Paleopedology Commission Symposium will be published in a special issue of Catena (Sessions a, c) and Quaternary International (Sessions b, c, e). The Catena volume will be edited by P. Felix-Henningsen and Th. Scholten, Giessen, Germany; The Quaternary International volume will be edited by: J. Catt and R. Kemp, Great Britain. Abstracts of Symposium are included into the current issue of Newsletter and are available on Paleopedology Commission Web-site.

Strategy for project-based activities

INQUA International Council has made a decision, that all INQUA activities should be project oriented during this Inter-Congress period (1995-1999).

The following Project of Paleopedology Commission was approved by INQUA Executive Committee: "Response of soil formation to short-warm-episodes of Asian summer monsoon (Leaders: Fang Xiao-Min, China, A. Makeev, Russia, J. Ono, Japan, S. Banerjee, USA, A. Bronger, Germany).

At the last meeting in Durban, 1997 Executive Committee decided to encourage the commissions to come up with project proposals where an official approval by the INQUA could help to raise money from non-INQUA bodies. It will introduce a somewhat new policy, because such a project can be accepted as an INQUA project without being supported economically. For high cost projects which need support from non-INQUA sources, it is also possible to contribute some seed money if that can help to generate a larger funding. The requirement is that a normal INQUA project proposal is submitted and that the plans for additional funding is described. The proposals should be submitted to the President of commission A. Bronger and then forwarded to INQUA Executive Committee on behalf of Commission. More detailed information is available on the main INQUA Home-page at: http://www.inqua.nlh.no.