Two of the eight target protected areas of the SNPA project were inscribed into the UNESCO World Heritage List on 6th July 2017.
During the ongoing annual session of the World Heritage Committee, 63 ancient and primeval beech forests in 10 European countries were added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List to form the serial property called ‘Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions in Europe’.
These forests constitute an extension of the World Heritage Property ‘Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Ancient Beech Forests of Germany’. The World Heritage Committee recognizes these forests because they jointly give evidence of the exceptional evolution and impact the beech ecosystem has had in Europe since the last Ice Age. They are of outstanding universal value and form our joint natural heritage.
The extension that has been approved is the result of an international action that was launched in 2012. An impressive international partnership of state agencies, research institutions and non-governmental organisations since then have joined forces to identify the most suitable sites and prepared the nomination dossiers.
For the Carpathians in Ukraine already since 2007 the following sites were included into the UNESCO World Heritage list: within the Carpathian Biosphere Reserve (Chornogora, Kuziy-Trybushany, Maramarosh, Svydovets, Uholka-Shyrokyi Luh) and within Uzhanskyi National Nature Park (Stuzhytsia-Uzhok).
In 2017 these are the additional 23% (5500 ha) got the UNESCO status to the already existing 23,510 ha. They are 5 sites in Carpathian Mts and Podillya regions. The following project sites also received status: 750 hectares of the Gorgany State Nature Reserve and 2863 hectares of the National Nature Park Synevir were inscribed.
Now the project covers more than 95% of all UNESCO sites of serial property called ‘Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions in Europe’ in the Ukrainian Carpathians.
For further information see also: http://wwf.panda.org/uk/materials/news/?305390/unesco-ukraine-pralis