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Pastimes : Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: At_The_Ask who wrote (101845)	5/13/2001 8:45:45 AM
From: Ilaine	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 436258

The UN designates certain sites all over the world as "World Heritage" sites. In Canada I have visited Ft. Louisbourg in Nova Scotia, and hope to visit l'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland. In the US, Independence Hall, Monticello and University of Virginia, and the Statue of Liberty are on the list, as well as several national parks. This is from a research report to Congress: >>The Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, popularly known as the World Heritage Convention, was adopted by the General Conference of UNESCO in 1972. The United States initiated and led the development of the treaty and was the first nation to ratify it in 1973. Currently, 158 nations are parties to the Convention. The Convention's purpose is to identify and list worldwide natural and cultural sites and monuments considered to be of such exceptional interest and such universal value that their protection is the responsibility of all mankind. Each country adopting the Convention pledges to protect listed sites and monuments within its borders and refrain from activities which harm World Heritage sites in other countries. The Convention states in Article 4 that each party to it "recognizes that the duty of ensuring the identification, protection, conservation, presentation and transmission to future generations of the cultural and natural heritage .... situated on its territory, belongs primarily to that state." (1) The international community agrees to help protect them through the World Heritage Committee and Fund. << >>The World Heritage Convention does not give the United Nations authority over U.S. sites. The Department of State has testified that under the terms of the World Heritage Convention, management and sovereignty over the sites remain with the country where the site is located. Supporters of the World Heritage system note that member countries nominate sites for the World Heritage List voluntarily and agree to develop laws and procedures to protect them using their own constitutional procedures. Most of the U.S. sites named have already been accorded protection in law as national monuments or parks. In commenting on the bill, the Administration stated that the designation does not give the United Nations the authority to affect land management decisions within the United States and has not been utilized to exclude Congress from land management decisions. The Department of State notes that the Convention itself has no role or authority beyond listing sites and offering technical advice and assistance. Supporters of the convention assert that World Heritage status has been the impetus behind closer cooperation between federal agencies and state and local authorities. << cnie.org Here is a list of the sites: unesco.org Apparently there was an issue concerning a gold mine a mile from Yellowstone Park. The World Heritage Committee placed Yellowstone on the List of World Heritage in Danger and asked Congress to do something about it. Congress paid the mine owner for not developing it. There is always ongoing tension, bad feelings, and sometimes outright conflict between people who want to preserve national parks and people who want to use them or develop them. There's no quick fix or easy answer for any of them, and a mature point of view, I believe, is to recognize that there are competing interests which may not be amenable to compromise. unesco.org