#Status of Coral Reefs 2002 - International Coral Reef Action Network

Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2002
WORLD HERITAGE SITES AND CORAL REEFS
The Convention for World Heritage Sites provides for the protection of those cultural
and natural properties deemed to be of outstanding universal value. The WHC (full
title ‘The Convention Concerning the Protection of World Cultural and Natural
Heritage’; www.whc.unesco.org) was adopted in 1972, with more than 150 State
Parties, and is an important instrument of international cooperation for environmental
protection. The Convention is founded on the premise that the world’s great cultural
and natural sites constitute a common heritage for all humankind, and their destruction
would be an irreparable loss. There are 690 WH sites, of which 529 are cultural sites,
138 are natural sites and 23 are mixed. The WH Committee decides on sites to add
and assists State Parties to protect these sites, with advice from the IUCN on natural
properties and by the International Council on Monuments and Sites on cultural ones.
The major criterion for inclusion on the WH List is ‘outstanding universal value’, with
4 natural criteria to assist in selection. A natural site must: (i) exemplify major stages of
the earth’s history; (ii) represent ongoing ecological and biological processes; (iii) be of
exceptional natural beauty; or (iv) contain the valued natural habitats, including those
of endangered species. Sites must be virtually intact and protected and managed to the
required standard. If a WH Site is seriously endangered, it may be entitled to special
attention and international assistance.
Coastal, marine and small island biodiversity sites are under-represented, e.g. there are
less than 10 inscribed for these values amongst 70 which feature biodiversity attributes
of the 690 total. The UNESCO World Heritage Centre, the U.S. National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, UNEP-World Conservation Monitoring Centre and
IUCN convened a workshop of experts in February 2002 that recommended the
following 37 top priority sites that, if listed, would fill critical gaps to improve the
representation of tropical, coastal, marine and small island ecosystems on the World
Heritage List.
Middle East:
• Northeast Red Sea (Saudi Arabia, Egypt)
• Socotra Archipelago (Yemen)
• Southeast Oman
• Southern Red Sea Complex (Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Djibouti, Eritrea)
• Southern Gulf (United Arab Emirates)
• Hawar Islands (Bahrain)
• Jubail Wildlife Sanctuary (Saudi Arabia),
• Southern Gulf (Murawah Bu-Tini area)
East Africa:
• Astove-Cosmoledo, Extension of Aldabra World Heritage Site (Seychelles),
• Bazaruto Archipelago (Mozambique)
• Rufiji River Delta- Mafia-Songo Songo, (Tanzania),
• Maputo Bay – Ponto do Ouro, (Mozambique),
• Mnazi Bay-Ruvuma-Quirimbas, (Tanzania, Mozambique),
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