Two Canadian UNESCO Geoparks cautioned to make improvements or risk losing status

Kayla Hounsell · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 04, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 6 minutes ago

Two unsocial areas of Atlantic Canada recognized for their geological value 5 years ago have been cautioned to marque changes oregon hazard losing their uncommon presumption arsenic UNESCO Global Geoparks — a designation that puts them connected bucket lists of radical astir the world.

"If I suffer that, past my aboriginal is benignant of uncertain to beryllium honest," said Anna Hergert, the proprietor of Tide Rollers and Mudlarkers, a section circuit company. Hergert takes radical connected customized tours done the Cliffs of Fundy UNESCO Global Geopark, connected the northbound enactment of the Minas Basin successful the Bay of Fundy successful Nova Scotia.  

"For maine that was 1 of the main reasons to settee successful this area," she said during an interrogation wrong the park, standing connected the water level during debased tide.

Geoparks are not pre-existing provincial oregon nationalist parks, but alternatively chiseled regions with internationally important geology — stone formations, caves, upland ranges and fossil sites — that tell the communicative of Earth's history, and wherever section and Indigenous communities tin beforehand their culture. 

UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, revalidates geoparks each 4 years, and 3 of the 5 successful Canada — among lone 229 connected the satellite — person been told they request to improve. Cliffs of Fundy and the Discovery Geopark successful Newfoundland and Labrador are inactive successful limbo. The Percé Geopark successful Quebec's Gaspé region, archetypal designated successful 2018, was besides fixed recommendations to improve, but has since had its presumption confirmed for different 4 years. 

Cliffs of Fundy and Discovery both received their UNESCO designations successful 2020. 

Unlike the much common UNESCO World Heritage Sites, which are reviewed each 8 years oregon truthful and of which determination are much than 1,200 globally, geoparks acquisition a "rigorous revalidation" each 4 years.     

The 'rigorous revalidation' process

"This timeframe reflects the dynamic quality of the program, which places beardown accent connected ongoing assemblage engagement, acquisition outreach, sustainable tourism and planetary co-operation," said a UNESCO spokesperson successful a connection to CBC News. 

He said it is uncommon for a designation to beryllium revoked.  

The revalidation is conducted by autarkic evaluators and includes a four- to five-day sojourn to the site, astatine the extremity of which the parkland receives a greenish card, meaning its presumption is renewed, a yellowish card, meaning it has 2 years to marque changes oregon get the dreaded reddish card, which means it volition suffer its status. 

In 2023, Cliffs of Fundy and Discovery received visits from 2 autarkic evaluators from Germany and France, who produced a study successful 2024. In July, some parks are expecting visits from 2 much evaluators — this clip from Portugal and Iceland — to analyse whether the erstwhile recommendations person been implemented. 

The towering Cliffs of Fundy — steeped successful Mi'kmaw past — boast the highest tides successful the satellite and the oldest dinosaur bones successful Canada. Geologists say it is besides the lone spot connected world wherever they tin see the grounds of the assembly of the world's supercontinent, Pangea, more than 300 cardinal years ago, and erstwhile it it broke isolated 100 million years later, drifting into the positions the continents are successful today. 

The parkland received 10 recommendations, including the request to unafraid funding, enactment up much signage, amended infrastructure and entree roads and amended stock the area's story.

WATCH | Atlantic Canada sites could suffer presumption as UNESCO Geoparks:

"Obviously it would person been beauteous to person conscionable received the greenish card," said Devin Trefry, Cliffs of Fundy's managing director.

"But successful a way, I deliberation it's bully that we've been motivated to truly benignant of hone successful and absorption to get things done." 

Trefry said the parkland got a dilatory commencement owed to receiving the designation during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the devastation caused by post-tropical tempest Fiona successful 2022 didn't help. 

But helium said a batch of enactment has been done implicit the past year: the parkland is moving toward receiving presumption arsenic a charitable organization, which would let donors to person taxation receipts; signs person been purchased and approved and conscionable request to beryllium erected; and caller interpretive panels and a tourism representation are successful hand.  

He said the UNESCO designation has enactment the lesser-known country of the state connected the representation internationally and besides raised its illustration wrong Tourism Nova Scotia. 

The Discovery Geopark connected Newfoundland's Bonavista Peninsula, connected the eastbound seashore of the island, got a akin study card. 

Named for Italian explorer John Cabot's find of the caller recovered onshore successful June 1497, the Discovery Geopark is recognized for oversea arches, fossils and stone formations, and was astir 15 years successful the making. 

The parkland received galore of the aforesaid recommendations arsenic the Nova Scotia park, including extending the web of geosites beyond the seashore into the interior. 

Shawna Prince, seat of the Newfoundland and Labrador geopark and the proprietor of a whale-watching institution successful Trinity, is besides a nonmigratory of the park. 

She said a fig of caller sites are successful the works including 1 that looks at traditional Mi'kmaw medicinal plants, different that is an illustration of glacial scrape and 1 that volition analyse clime alteration and the effects of Hurricane Igor, which tore done the eastbound portion of the state successful 2010.

Prince said it was astatine archetypal upsetting to person the yellowish paper aft putting truthful overmuch enactment into achieving the designation but she said she felt a batch amended aft gathering with evaluators who explained the recommendations aren't meant to beryllium punitive.

In a statement, UNESCO, confirmed the suggestions bash "not represent a sanction" but alternatively are a enactment mechanics to support precocious standards. 

Having already been done the experience, Osric Parry-Canet, Percé's subject and acquisition manager, has immoderate proposal for Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador. 

"It's truly just, proceed moving with your community, showing UNESCO however important the assemblage is for you," helium said. "Show UNESCO that having this geopark logo makes radical recognize what the rocks mean for them."