Glacier Is In Danger
World Heritage Sites
Each year representatives from countries around the world gather for the annual meeting of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC), which seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage sites around the world. Over 193 countries are party to an international treaty called the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, adopted by UNESCO in 1972. To date, 878 properties of outstanding universal value to humanity have been designated by committee as World Heritage Sites.
World Heritage Sites in Danger
UNESCO also identifies sites that are threatened by development, neglect or other impacts. Today, over 30 sites are considered to be "In Danger". In June of 2009, an international coalition of 11 conservation organizations from the United States and Canada asked the World Heritage Commission to prepare a report to determine if a proposed coal mine in the Canadian headwaters of Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park warrants the listing of this, the world's first peace park, as an endangered world heritage site.
To review documents, scientific reports, and media coverage related to the petition click here.
As a result of public concern and the international petition the World Heritage Committee voted unanimously to send an international team of scientists this fall to evaluate and provide recommendations that will ensure the protection of the area’s outstanding universal values. The committee also requested Canada and the United States to prepare a joint report on the impacts of proposed mining near Waterton-Glacier for presentation at the next World Heritage Committee meeting.
What You Can Do
Let the World Heritage Committee know that mining in the Flathead River Valley is not appropriate: this area should be protected as one of the last remaining pristine landscapes in North America. Send an email to Mr. Kishore Rao, Deputy Director of the World Heritage Center asking that the World Heritage Committee fully investigate the impacts of these projects on Waterton-Glacier.
