UNESCO World Heritage Certificate for "Ancient Beech Forests of Germany"
Today Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen was presented with a certificate recognizing the inscription of German beech forests on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It was handed over by Kishore Rao, Director of the UNESCO World Heritage Center, at a ceremony in Berlin which was also attended by representatives of the four Länder concerned and representatives of partner countries the Slovak Republic and Ukraine. At the event the countries and people who are actively engaged in the conservation of valuable natural beech forests were commended. The Federal Environment Minister stressed: "Our beech forests are now on a par with Yellowstone National Park, Victoria Falls and the Galapagos Islands. The World Heritage status commits us to attaching highest priority to these valuable beech forests in the future too".
In the beginning of 2010 Germany applied for the inscription of its outstanding ancient beech forests on the prestigious UNESCO World Heritage List. On 25 June, 2011 the beech forests were inscribed on the list. These are selected sites located in five protected areas:
- National Park Jasmund (Mecklenburg-Western Poimerania)
- Serrahn sub-section of Müritz National Park (Mecklenburg-Western Poimerania)
- Grumsin in the UNESCO biosphere reserve Schorfheide-Chorin (Brandenburg)
- National Park Hainich (Thuringia)
- National Park Kellerwald-Edersee (Hesse).
These areas constitute the most valuable relics of large-scale ecological beech forests in Germany. They are an ideal supplement to the UNESCO world heritage site "Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians" (date of inscription 2007). Together these sites now constitute one joint world heritage property.
The UNESCO Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage provides protection for outstanding cultural and natural goods. Following the Messel pit fossil site (date of inscription 1995) and the Wadden Sea (2009), the beech forests are now the third world heritage site in Germany.
Further information can be found at the website www.bmub.bund.de/buchenwaelder, which also offers the Federal Environment Ministry brochure "Die Alten Buchenwälder Deutschlands (Ancient Beech Forests of Germany)" and posters as downloads. Photos and a documentary showing the handing over of the certificate will be available soon. See also: