A University of Queensland-led international study published today warns that more than 100 are being destroyed by encroaching human activities.
Lead author and Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» PhD student said Natural World Heritage Sites should be maintained and protected fully.
“For a site to lose 10 or 20 per cent of its forested area in two decades is alarming and must be addressed,” Mr Allan said.
He said Natural World Heritage Sites, via the process driven by (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation), were globally recognised as containing some of the Earth's most valuable natural assets.
The authors looked at human pressure (using the updated global ) such as roads, agriculture, urbanisation and industrial infrastructure, along with forest loss, over time.
They found that the Human Footprint has increased in 63 per cent of Natural World Heritage Sites across all continents except Europe over the past two decades.
The most impacted Natural World Heritage Sites were found in Asia including: in India, in Indonesia, and in Nepal; along with in Ethiopia.
In terms of forest loss, highly impacted parks included in Honduras, which suffered 365 km2 (8.5 percent) of deforestation since 2000.
Even celebrated locations like were impacted, losing approximately six per cent of its forests.
Meanwhile, - crossing the Canadian and USA border - lost almost one quarter of its forested area (23 per cent or 540 km2).
Senior author, of Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» and the Wildlife Conservation Society said any place listed as a World Heritage site was a globally important asset to all of humanity.
“The world would never accept the Acropolis being knocked down, nor a couple of pyramids being flattened for housing estates or roads, yet right now, across our planet, we are letting many of our Natural World Heritage Sites be fundamentally altered,” he said.
The authors said by highlighting Natural World Heritage Sites in immediate danger, the study provided useful baseline data for future monitoring and conservation efforts.
meets again in July in Poland, and the authors said the study should be used to stimulate further action.
“It is clearly time for the global community to stand up and hold governments to account so that they take the conservation of Natural World Heritage Sites seriously,” Mr Allan said.
“We urge the World Heritage Committee to immediately assess the highly threatened sites we have identified.
“Urgent intervention is needed to save these places and their outstanding natural universal values.”
Autthors said Natural World Heritage Sites such as the and that showed minimal change in forest loss or human pressure, were in the minority.
The study by an international team from , and the appears in the journal .
Media: James Allan (Brisbane, Australia), j.allan2@uq.edu.au, +61 424 982 651 or Dr James Watson (Brisbane, Australia), jwatson@wcs.org, +61 409 185 592.
