For the first time in the history of Georgia, 4 protected areas have been included in the ENESCO list of natural heritage. The decision was made at the 44th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in Fuzhou, China. This nomination includes peatlands of Kobuleti Protected Areas and Kolkheti National Park, Kintrishi Protected Areas and Mtirala National Park, which has been added to the 213 World Heritage List as “Colchis Forests and Wetlands” and it has earned a decent place alongside the Amazon Forest, the Grand Canyon National Park, Yellowstone National Parks, Mount Etna next to the Swiss Alps.
The UNESCO nomination was based on the process of developing management plans for the Kolkheti Protected Areas. In 2015, BSU won two tenders announced by the Protected Areas: in the development of Management Plans for the “Kolkheti National Park and Katsoburi Reserve” and the “Kobuleti Protected Areas.” This was the first time any university participated in the preparation of a scientific dossier.
The process of development of the management plants, led by Izolda Matchutadze, Head of the Kolkheti Mires and Aquatic Ecosystem Conservation Division at the BSU Institute of Phytopathology and Biodiversity of the BSU, engaged Georgian researches and the researchers at the Greifswald University in Germany. Special contribution was made by the Honorary Doctor of the BSU Hans Houston, who as an expert on peatlands was engaged in the plan development.
We congratulate Georgia, the BSU Institute of Phytopathology and Biodiversity and Izolda Matchutadze, Head of the Kolkheti Mires and Aquatic Ecosystem Conservation Devision, on this important victory.
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