50 Million Years of History: Hantan River Certified as a 'Global Geopark'... 400 Times the Size of Yeouido

Hantan River Meonguri Gorge

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] 'Hantangang,' where pristine natural ecology shaped over 500,000 years and rich history surge, has been designated as South Korea's fourth UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Global Geopark.

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 8th that the '209th UNESCO Executive Board Meeting,' held in Paris, France, from the 29th of last month (local time), has given final approval for the certification of Hantangang Global Geopark.

The certification covers a total area of 1,165.61㎢, including the Gyeonggi-do ▲Pocheon City basin of 493.24㎢ ▲Yeoncheon County basin of 273.65㎢ ▲Gangwon-do Cheorwon County basin of 398.72㎢ through which the Hantangang flows. This is 400 times the size of Yeouido (2.9㎢).

Accordingly, a total of 26 geological and cultural sites scattered across these areas, including Hwajeokyeon, Bidulginang Waterfall, Auraji Pillow Lava, Jaein Waterfall, Jiktang Waterfall, Goseokjeong, and Cheorwon Lava Plateau, have been registered.

A Global Geopark is a designated area preserved for its aesthetic, archaeological, historical-cultural, ecological, and geological value and utilized as a tourism resource. It is one of UNESCO's three major protection systems alongside World Heritage and Biosphere Reserves.

Hantangang boasts extremely high geological value with volcanic landforms such as columnar joints and pillow lava formed by lava erupted from North Korea's Orisan between 500,000 and 100,000 years ago, well preserved along with the pristine ecosystem of the DMZ area, offering a rare spectacle globally.

It has also been highly evaluated for its many historical and cultural landmarks, from the Jeongok-ri Prehistoric Site to Goguryeo Dangposeong Fortress and the Peace Observatory.

The province, together with Gangwon-do, has moved away from the previous method of managing the Hantan-Imjin River National Geopark and Gangwon Peace Region National Geopark separately and has jointly pursued UNESCO Global Geopark certification since signing a win-win cooperation agreement in March 2016.

Hantangang Hwajeokyeon

Accordingly, various activities have been carried out to promote the value of Hantangang globally, including joint academic research projects for the Global Geopark certification, briefing sessions inviting Global Geopark evaluation committee members, on-site inspections by domestic experts, and UNESCO preliminary and on-site evaluations.

In particular, Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung and Gangwon Province Governor Choi Moon-soon personally delivered letters to the UNESCO headquarters and submitted the Global Geopark certification application to UNESCO on November 30, 2018.

UNESCO selected Hantangang as a candidate site in September last year and decided on the final designation at this certification meeting.

Since the Global Geopark must be re-certified every four years, the province plans to continuously promote academic research projects to prove geological value, geological site maintenance projects, and develop various geological education and tourism programs for domestic and international visitors.

Governor Lee Jae-myung said, "The certification of Hantangang as a Global Geopark is the result of the joint efforts of Gyeonggi Province, Gangwon Province, Pocheon City, Yeoncheon County, and Cheorwon County," adding, "We will continue to work closely with related organizations to preserve and develop Hantangang so that it can become a representative attraction not only in Korea but also internationally."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.