CHRISTCHURCH – Jeju Island, off the southern coast of Korea, has become the first Korean natural heritage site to be added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
A meeting of the UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee in New Zeland decided on the inscription of the Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes on the World Heritage list.
The Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes is comprised of a shield volcano and rises to 1,950 metres above sea level at Mount Halla, South Korea’s highest peak. The site covers 18,846 hectares, over 10 per cent of Jeju Island.
Jeju Island is located 130 kilometers south of the Korean Peninsula. The largest island in Korea, it is covered with dark-brown volcanic rock and volcanic soil.
Mount Halla was formed 25,000 years ago and volcanic activities of Jeju Island began about 1.2 million years ago.
As the official advisory body on natural World Heritage sites, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) recommended the lava tube system to be included on the World Heritage List.
“The Geomunoreum lava tube system is the most impressive and significant series of protected lava tube caves in the world and includes a spectacular array of stalactites and stalagmites”, the Union said.
