Tasmania's World Heritage Area (see map) includes approximately 800,000 ha (8,000 km2). The Great Barrier Reef (QLD) and Kakadu National Park are also part of that list and therefore are under the protection of the UNESCO.
The natu re reserves enlisted are to be saved and protected in the way they are now under all circumstances. Reasons for the UNESCO to take up a region in their list are for example:
- the protected area shows parts of the earth development
- Interaction between the human and nature can be seen in an exemplary manner
- the area contains very rare and exceptional natural beauties
- the area contains endangered species
The UNESCO's headquarter is located in Paris. 70 countries have signed the contracts regulating the admission. A board of 21 members who are being changed by a rotating scheme so that every country is represented is sorting out the applications for admittance. Decisions are made at the end of every year.
Tasmania's enlistment is due to the conservationists who pushed through the application against the opposition of industry and government.
The area is now one of the biggest national parks in the world. It is one of the last remaining areas of wilderness, a garden of wild beauty, a huge zoological garden without fences and cages.
