First in Russia Geopark under the auspices of UNESCO may appear in Bashkiria

UFA, 27 March 2017. /Bashinform News Agency, Galina Bakhshieva/. The first Geopark in Russia under the auspices of UNESCO may appear in Salavat district of Bashkortostan. According to experts, the region of the republic has sufficient potential for this.

There are 31 specially protected natural areas in the northeast of the republic. These are five state nature reserves and 26 natural monuments. Their total area is almost 50 thousand hectares. Also there is a geological monument in the territory of the Salavat district - "Geological section Mechetlino". One of the most popular Bashkir sanatoriums - "Yangan-Tau" is also located there.

According to the head of the Ministry of Ecology of the region, Ildar Khadyev, with the international status the sanatorium and nature monuments will receive a new impetus for their further development.

The idea of creating Geoparks was born in the late 1990-s in Europe with the aim of stopping economic downturn in rural areas by attracting tourists to geological heritage sites. At the moment, there are 111 UNESCO Geoparks in 32 countries.

"The status of a geopark is not so strict in comparison with the status of a specially protected natural area. However, the territory of the geopark should be protected by local, regional or federal legislation. Unlike natural parks, where there are restrictions on visits, geoparks are geared towards environmental and educational activities, geotourism", Larisa Belan director of the Life Safety Research Institute of Bashkortostan explained.

Among the main tasks entrusted to geoparks, Larisa Belan named the preservation of geological and cultural heritage, education, economic development of the region, as well as involving local population in organization and management of the geoparks.

During the discussion, environmentalists, scientists, representatives of the legislative and executive authorities came to a common opinion: the territory of the Salavat district was the most suitable for creating the first Geopark in Russia under the auspices of UNESCO. But this requires relevant regulatory framework development. Now the concept of "geopark" is simply absent in the Russian legislation.

Ildar Khadyev called on the members of the working group on the geopark creation to use every effort and opportunity in formation of the necessary documentation.