AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, July 13, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- UNESCO just announced that it has placed the Wadden Sea in the Netherlands on the World Heritage List. This puts the Wadden Sea on the same footing as other world famous natural wonders on the World Heritage List such as the Grand Canyon in the USA and the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. UNESCO underlines with the allotment of this prestigious predicate that the Wadden Sea has such natural value to the world that it deserves this protection and must be cherished and kept safe for future generations. The Wadden Sea World Heritage Site encompasses the Dutch and German parts of the Wadden Sea. It covers an area of almost 10,000 square kilometers along a coastal strip of about 400 kilometers.
In order to be included in the World Heritage List, an area must be of outstanding universal value and be intact, and its protection must be guaranteed. UNESCO uses several different criteria to assess whether an area merits World Heritage Site status. It deemed the Wadden Sea to be globally unique in at least three of those criteria.
One of the reasons the area has been placed on this list is because it's unique in its variety. The Wadden Sea has many different kinds of habitat and therefore offers a home to more than 10,000 plant and animal species. Furthermore the Wadden Sea is unique in the whole world in demonstrating how nature, plants and animals adapt themselves to constantly changing conditions in an area where fresh water (from land) and salt water (from the sea) meet. Low and high tide alternate every six hours in the Wadden Sea, bringing about stunning changes to the landscape almost every minute of the day.
The Wadden Foundation -- the collaboration of the five tourist offices on the Dutch islands in the Wadden Sea -- is pleased with the allotment. Chairman Jaap van der Ploeg reacts: "The coronation of this unique tidal landscape is totally justified. We sincerely hope that more people will come and discover the new World Heritage Site with their own eyes. A visit to one of our five pearls in the Dutch Wadden Sea -- the islands Schiermonnikoog, Texel, Ameland, Vlieland and Terschelling -- will remain a fantastic way for people to discover the World Heritage Site."
More information can be found at:
http://www.dutch-frisian-islands.com/waddensea-world-heritage/
http://www.worldheritage-waddensea.org
Note to Editors: images available upon request.