Press release

Scotland to have world바카라 사이트™s first peatland UNESCO World Heritage site

The Flow Country has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List

  • Site to become world바카라 사이트™s first peatland bog to gain world heritage status 
  • Becomes Scotland바카라 사이트™s first natural world heritage site, joining the likes of the Grand Canyon and the Great Barrier Reef

The Flow Country has become the UK바카라 사이트™s newest UNESCO World Heritage Site, having been granted the accolade today, at the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee.

The landscape, which is widely considered to be the largest area of blanket bog in the world covering around 1,500 square miles in Caithness and Sutherland, has become the UK바카라 사이트™s 35th UNESCO World Heritage Site and is the world바카라 사이트™s first ever peatland site to gain world heritage status. 

The site will also become Scotland바카라 사이트™s first natural world heritage site and joins a very exclusive list of natural UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including The Grand Canyon and The Great Barrier Reef.

It will be the seventh Scottish site, joining St Kilda and the Forth Bridge, which attract hundreds of thousands of visitors to Scotland. 

Due to the nature of the site, this listing is also expected to bring new opportunities for local people through the creation of green jobs in landscape restoration and conservation. 

The Flow Country is home to a wide range of wetland and moorland species, including many birds, such as the red-throated diver, golden eagle and short-eared owl and has been considered to be of outstanding universal value due to its remarkable diversity, the home that it provides for these species and the role it plays in storing approximately 400 million tonnes of carbon in the north of Scotland. 

The news follows the announcement of Gracehill in Northern Ireland receiving World Heritage Status, making this the second new addition to the list of UK World Heritage Sites today. 

UK 바카라 사이트 Culture Minister Sir Chris Bryant said: 

It is fantastic to see the UK adding two new sites to the World Heritage List in the space of a day - of historical and natural significance respectively.

The Flow Country is one of our most precious resources, as a vital habitat for many species and a key site for carbon capture that continues to inform our understanding of how blanket bog can be used to help mitigate climate change.

It is right to recognise this truly inspiring landscape and I look forward to working closely with counterparts in Scotland to showcase this important addition to our UK World Heritage Sites.

Scottish Secretary Ian Murray said:

Scotland has a rich history of UNESCO World Heritage sites with six spread across our country from Heart of Neolithic Orkney to New Lanark, the Old and New Towns of Edinburgh to St Kilda and I am delighted the Flow Country has become Scotland바카라 사이트™s seventh.

Thanks to a strong endorsement from the UK 바카라 사이트 the Flow Country, which has international importance as a habitat and for the diverse range of rare and unusual breeding birds it supports, is now the first peatland site on the World Heritage list.

Acting Scottish 바카라 사이트 Net Zero Secretary Gillian Martin said:

This is a truly momentous day for Caithness and Sutherland, and indeed Scotland as a whole.

The Flow Country is an area of truly outstanding natural beauty and its diverse ecosystems and peatlands are a vital part of our efforts to combat climate change and nature loss. This new global prominence will help preserve the area for many generations to come.

I want to congratulate the Flow Country Partnership and everyone who has worked so hard towards this tremendous achievement. Their passion and determination has not only elevated the Flow Country to UNESCO World Heritage Status, but has ensured its protection far into the future.

Bid lead for the Flow Country World Heritage Site project and NatureScot Head of Operations for the North of Scotland, Graham Neville, said: 

World Heritage status for the Flow Country is a momentous moment for Scotland바카라 사이트™s people and their beloved landscape. This successful bid is testament to the hard work and determination of the Flow Country World Heritage project team as well as community members, scientific experts, businesses, landowners and public bodies from across the Flow Country who have been so generous with their time, knowledge and expertise to shape the bid for the benefit of the whole area. World Heritage Site status will lead to greater understanding of the Flow Country and raise the profile of Scotland바카라 사이트™s peatlands globally for their value as biodiverse habitats and important carbon sinks. It is a wonderful recognition of the expert stewardship of farmers and crofters in maintaining this incredible ecosystem as a natural legacy for future generations.

Professor Mike Robinson, Non-Executive Director, Culture at the United Kingdom National Commission for UNESCO says:

We are delighted that the Flow Country has been inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in recognition of its Outstanding Universal Value. World Heritage status recognises the global importance of the Flow Country and its peat bogs, not only as an important ecosystem for wildlife but also, through their carbon storage, as a critical defence against the impact of climate change. In this sense, World Heritage and the protection afforded to it will contribute directly to sustainable development.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

The UK 바카라 사이트바카라 사이트™s Department for Culture, Media and Sport is responsible for meeting the requirements of the World Heritage Convention within the UK. This includes maintaining and reviewing the Tentative List of sites, formally nominating new sites, and ensuring existing sites are conserved, protected and given a life in the community.

The other UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Scotland are St. Kilda, Edinburgh Old Town and New Town, The Heart of Neolithic Orkney, New Lanark, The Antonine Wall and The Forth Bridge.

The first UNESCO World Heritage Sites were announced in 1986. The full list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the UK and Overseas Territories are:

Cultural:

  • Blaenavon Industrial Landscape (2000)바카라 사이트¨
  • Blenheim Palace (1987)바카라 사이트¨
  • Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine바카라 사이트™s Abbey, and St Martin바카라 사이트™s Church (1988)바카라 사이트¨
  • Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd (1986)바카라 사이트¨
  • City of Bath (1987)바카라 사이트¨
  • Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape (2006)바카라 사이트¨
  • Derwent Valley Mills (2001)바카라 사이트¨
  • Durham Castle and Cathedral (1986)바카라 사이트¨
  • Frontiers of the Roman Empire (1987,2005,2008)바카라 사이트¨
  • Gorham바카라 사이트™s Cave Complex (2016)바카라 사이트¨
  • Heart of Neolithic Orkney (1999)바카라 사이트¨
  • Historic Town of St George and Related Fortifications, Bermuda (2000)바카라 사이트¨
  • Ironbridge Gorge (1986)
  • Maritime Greenwich (1997)바카라 사이트¨
  • New Lanark (2001)바카라 사이트¨
  • Old and New Towns of Edinburgh (1995)바카라 사이트¨
  • Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey including Saint Margaret바카라 사이트™s Church (1987)바카라 사이트¨
  • Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and Canal (2009)바카라 사이트¨
  • Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (2003)바카라 사이트¨
  • Saltaire (2001)바카라 사이트¨
  • Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales (2021)
  • Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites (1986)바카라 사이트¨
  • Studley Royal Park including the Ruins of Fountains Abbey (1986)바카라 사이트¨
  • The English Lake District (2017)바카라 사이트¨
  • The Forth Bridge (2015)바카라 사이트¨
  • The Great Spa Towns of Europe (2021)
  • Tower of London (1988)바카라 사이트¨
  • Jodrell Bank Observatory (2019)바카라 사이트¨

Natural:

  • Dorset and East Devon Coast (2001)바카라 사이트¨
  • Giant바카라 사이트™s Causeway and Causeway Coast (1986)바카라 사이트¨
  • Gough and Inaccessible Islands (1995,2004)바카라 사이트¨
  • Henderson Island (1988)바카라 사이트¨ 바카라 사이트¨

Mixed:

  • St Kilda (1986,2004, 2005)

Updates to this page

Published 26 July 2024