This volume, entitled "Sedimentology, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection", contains a summary of nine papers given at the 9th "Kontaktwochenende Sedimentologie" held in Aachen in September 1994 and six papers given at the 11th "Kontaktwochenende" held in Perl in September 1996. The "Kontaktwochenende" is an annual meeting of the Aachen Sedimentology Group (Lehr- und Forschungsgebiet: Allgemeine und Historische Geologie, Arbeitsrichtung: Geologie Sedimentärer Becken) covering topics relating specifically to sedimentology, with each meeting focusing on a particular theme. The current volume concentrates on fundamental approaches to sedimentology, with special emphasis on new approaches which find practical application, notably with regard to natural resource identification and utilisation. In addition, a part of the 9th meeting considered the ethical dimension of natural resource utilisation, including a consideration of the practicalities of environmental protection as it affects Earth materials. This innovative approach fits well with the way that the Aachen meetings have developed, with the intentation to address more challenging and controversial issues. The first part concentrates on fundamentals of sedimentology, and new approaches which have been developed for a number of subject areas. Zimmerle begins the volume with a review of where sedimentary petrology has reached by 1994, drawing on his long experience of the field. Draxler then describes new geophysical approaches which are being used to acquire data from boreholes for the purposes of formation evaluation. Spork and Köngeter simulate recent depositional processes of fine sediments in rivers and water reservoirs ("Haus Ley"), a topic of considerable importance to water exploitation. Swennen et al. demonstrate the use of geochemical mapping of overbank sediments in Belgium and Luxembourg to assess present environmental pollution. In the Krauthausen case study Neuendorf et al. simulate reactive solute transport in heterogeneous aquifers in the subsurface. Hüssner et al. present a three-dimensional simulation model (REPRO) for the growth and spreading of reefs, based on a modified Fisher equation. Finally, Pape applies the principles of fractal analysis to sedimentology in his study entitled "Fractal geometry and fractal ''Music of the Earth''". The following five papers deal under the heading "Natural Resources" with aspects of applied sedimentology. Mehlmann, Koch et al. and Köster refer to applied facies studies of carbonate rocks, including processes of limestone exploitation and assessment. Elfers et al. present the first hydrogeological map of North-Rhine-Westphalia, a contribution to applied geological mapping in general. Werner et al. evaluate the economic potential of Pleistocene sand and gravel deposits in the southern Oberrheingraben. The final section concentrates on environmental protection, and on some ethical aspects of the Earth sciences. Duff explains the legal protection given to important geological localities in Britain, and describes some of the methods used to ensure that the sites remain available for study and research. Jacobs et al. put these efforts in a wider context, by describing the work being done towards the development of a global philosophy and strategy for Earth Heritage Conservation. Pajor takes his even wider in his paper on Earth studies and theology, in which he reflects on the history and importance of the ethical dimension.