Passed Board Review... Only Final Approval Left for Next May
The proposal to designate the Gyeongbuk East Coast Global Geopark, which includes 11 geological sites such as Yeongdeok Sunrise Park and Yeongdeok Daebujeonghap in Yeongdeok County, Gyeongbuk, passed the review of the UNESCO Global Geoparks Council held in Cao Bang, Vietnam, on the 8th.
Officials from Yeongdeok County and Gyeongbuk Province attending the Asia-Pacific Global Geopark Conference.
Accordingly, if it receives final approval from the Executive Board at the UNESCO Spring General Assembly to be held in Paris, France, next May, the Gyeongbuk East Coast will be designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark.
The Gyeongbuk East Coast Global Geopark spans 2,693.69 km² across four local governments: Yeongdeok, Pohang, Gyeongju, and Uljin. It comprises 29 geological sites, including 11 in Yeongdeok such as Uljin Seongnyugul Cave, Yeongdeok Sunrise Park, Pohang Homigot Peninsula Trail, and Gyeongju Yangnam Columnar Joints, as well as 7 in Pohang and Uljin and 4 in Gyeongju.
The UNESCO Global Geoparks Council is known to have highly evaluated the area for its significant geological value as the largest Cenozoic fossil site on the Korean Peninsula, as well as the management and operational structure of the local governments and the excellent cooperation among related organizations.
County Governor Kim Kwangyeol said, "With the cooperation of Gyeongbuk Province and the four local governments, the designation of the Gyeongbuk East Coast as a UNESCO Global Geopark is within reach. If the global geopark is designated, our region’s ecotourism resources will increase significantly, and improving accessibility for tourists is expected to greatly contribute to revitalizing the local economy and ecotourism."
The 11 geological sites in Yeongdeok County, which has the largest number of sites included in the Gyeongbuk East Coast Global Geopark, are Yeongdeok Sunrise Park, Gyeongjeongri Coast, Jukdosan, Yeongdeok Daebujeonghap, Daejinri Gneiss, Goraebul Coast, Cheoram Mountain Fossil Site, Woncheokri Granite, Yongdeokri Migmatite, Yongchu Falls, and Dogaeri Adakite.
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