MAJOR RIVER FLOOD EVENTS IN THE ANTHROPOCENE: TRANSFORMATIONS OF THE CULTURAL LANDSCAPE OF OCNA MUREȘ
Ileana-Cristina VASILIȚĂ-CRĂCIUN1, Camelia-Ina GAVRA2
1 Romanian Academy, Cluj-Napoca Branch, Geographic Research Center, Republicii Street, 9, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, e-mail: ileana.vasilita@acad-cj.ro
2 E-mail: camelia.gavra@gmail.com
ABSTRACT. – Major River Flood Events in the Anthropocene: Transformations of the Cultural Landscape of Ocna Mureș. Over time, the town of Ocna Mureș has frequently been affected by floods due to its geographical location in the immediate vicinity of the Mureș River. Some of these events were of such magnitude that they caused irreversible changes to both the landscape and local human activities. The inherent resilience demonstrated highlights how the profound disruptions these hydrological events caused to human communities and ecosystem functioning necessitated specific human interventions that have shaped the current local cultural landscape within the Anthropocene. Consequently, the present and future management of this cultural landscape entails two seemingly contradictory actions: the rigorous conservation of viable elements and the simultaneous integration of new elements suited to ensuring the system’s evolutionary adaptation in the context of regional trends. Furthermore, the coherent evolution of this complex structure can only be achieved through policies aligned with broad agreements on sustainable development in the Anthropocene, as the cultural landscape itself constitutes a resource that must be preserved and passed on to future generations.
Keywords: Ocna Mureș, floods, cultural landscape, Anthropocene.