Dive sites incribed into UNESCO World Heritage Site list

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Dive sites incribed into UNESCO World Heritage Site list

July 19, 2016 - 17:34
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Revillagigedos archipelago (Socorro Islands) and Marine parks in central Red Sea included in the prestigeous list.

Solmar V in front of Socorro Island

-- from Wikipedia

A World Heritage Site is a place (such as a building, city, complex, desert, forest, island, lake, monument, or mountain) that is listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as being of special cultural or physical significance. The list is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 UNESCO member states which are elected by the General Assembly.

The programme catalogues, names, and conserves sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity. Under certain conditions, listed sites can obtain funds from the World Heritage Fund.

The World Heritage Committee, on the last afternoon of its 40th session which opened on 10 July, inscribed eight new sites on the World Heritage List, two of which are marine locales known to divers.

The four islands that make up the Revillagigedos Archipelago, in the eastern Pacific Ocean off the Coast of Mexico are remote, volcanic in origin and offer some of the most unpredictable, wild diving in the world. The islands which are also known among divers as Socorro Islands, after the biggest of the four, is known for spectacular underwater photography opportunities and those who love to swim with big marine pelagics!

The archipelago is part of a submerged mountain range, with the four islands representing the peaks of volcanoes emerging above sea level. The islands provide critical habitat for a range of wildlife and are of particular importance for seabirds. The surrounding waters have a remarkable abundance of large pelagic species, such as manta rays, whales, dolphins and sharks. Currently, there are two liveaboard dive charter operators who offer scheduled 8-11 night excursions—the Solmar V and the Nautilus Explorer.

The site in the central Red Sea, off the coast of Sudan, consists of two areas: Sudan Sanganeb Marine National Park which is an isolated, coral reef structure in the central Red Sea and the only atoll and Dungonab Bay/Mukkawar Island Marine National Park a highly diverse system of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, beaches and islets located ca. 125 km north of Port Sudan.

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