A scientific seminar was held at the Institute of Geography named after Academician Heydar Aliyev under the chairmanship of Director General Professor Zakir Eminov.

At the meeting, the leading researcher of the department of paleogeography, candidate of geological and mineralogical sciences Rashid Fataliyev made a report on the topic “Basalt columns of Azerbaijan and their importance in geotourism.”

The speaker gave detailed information about some basalt columns known in the world and noted in the Lesser Caucasus and Talysh Mountains of Azerbaijan, their geology, geomorphology and geographical distribution, and also emphasized the importance of promoting and popularizing this type of natural monuments for the development of geotourism in our country.

The scientist emphasized that the outcrops of basalt columns located in the regions of Kelbajar (Zar village, Tartarchay valley), Tovuz (Esrikchay valley) and Lerik (Heydar village, Galadag) regions have a high geotourism potential in terms of aesthetics and exoticism, and that they should be attractive to tourists as interesting natural monuments, based on scientific data, which reflect geological periods and conditions of formation, petrological, structural, geomorphological features.

1. Fataliyev noted that attention should be paid to the basalt columns discovered in Azerbaijan as a valuable natural monument and more carefully studied from a scientific point of view. Speaking about the importance of attaching special importance to the development of eco- and geotourism in our country, the researcher drew attention to the need to evaluate basalt columns as an interesting object of geotourism, their registration and classification, as well as strengthening educational work on the protection of natural monuments.

As a result, the scientist put forward a number of specific proposals in the listed areas. The presentation, which was received with interest by the participants, led to extensive discussion and useful ideas.