Phong Nha-Ke Bang Park reapplies for UNESCO recognition

The Management Board of Phong Nha- Ke Bang National Park September 11 sent a proposal to UNESCO in Paris, France, for recognition of Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park’s bio-diversification and to remain included on the World Heritage List, said Luu Minh Thanh, director of the Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park.
As the park’s recognition must be resubmitted every five years, the board has coordinated with local experts for the last two years to write the proposal in order to fulfill the new biological diversification criteria required by UNESCO.
The profile also showed a cypress-tree forest in Limestone Mountain, it is 400 years old and 500 meters high.
In July, 2003, Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, central province of Quang Binh, was placed on the World Heritage List for its geomorphologic and geological features.
Apart from the outstanding karst formations, Phong Nha-Ke Bang has been proved to have global specific values for biological diversification.
It was assessed to be one of 200 world centers of biological diversification, and two of 60 important bird habitations in Vietnam. It has a unique beauty which cannot be found in anywhere else in the world.
Of the many species in the park, 116 plants and 129 animals have been listed in Vietnam’s Red Book. Twenty-eight of the plants have high economic and scientific values and are in danger of extinction at the global level.
Vietnamese and international scientists said that biological diversification, as well as hidden values of the national park, will become valuable scientific tools for natural preservation, tourism promotion and socio-economic development.