Geology

The Ore of the Alps UNESCO Global Geopark is geologically located in the Northern Limestone Alps, the greywacke zone and the Tauern window (Penninic). The Northern Limestone Alps with the Hochkönig, Hagen- and Tennengebirge mountains are mainly composed of limestone and dolomites, which form rugged and brittle rock formations such as the Mandlwände (Mühlbach am Hochkönig). The softer slates and phyllites of the greywacke zone, on the other hand, form gentler peaks such as the Hochgründeck. This zone is also home to copper ore deposits, which have been characteristic for the region since prehistoric times. Further south, there are gorge limestones and limestone phyllites that form the Paarseen - Heukareck - Schuhflicker landscape conservation area.

Soil is the living layer of the solid earth. Soil colonisers, such as plants, dissolve minerals from the rocky subsoil and thus accelerate its weathering. At the same time, ants, spiders, earthworms and other soil dwellers process dead plant matter such as leaves, grass and wood, which adds carbon and nitrogen from the air to the soil. The excretions and remains of these creatures produce organic matter known as humus. This is the basis for production of all soil.

The soils in the Ore of the Alps UNESCO Global Geopark are "young". It was only after the melting of the large ice-age glaciers and the return of vegetation to the formerly ice-covered ground that the first pioneer plants were able to assert themselves.