Location Canada Criteria vii, viii Reference no. 304 | Type Natural Designated 1984 (8th session) | |
Governing body Parks Canada and BC Parks Similar Canadian Rockies, Columbia Icefield, Banff National Park, Kluane / Wrangell–St Elias / Gl, Jasper National Park | ||
The Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks World Heritage Site is located in the Canadian Rockies. It consists of four national parks:
and three British Columbia provincial parks:
The parks include mountains, glaciers and hot springs and the headwaters of major North American river systems including:
The area is known for its natural beauty and biological diversity. It includes the Burgess Shale site, a World Heritage Site in its own right from 1980 to 1984, when it was included in the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks WHS designation.
World Heritage Site
In 1983 Canada nominated Banff, Jasper, Kootenay and Yoho national parks for inclusion on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. UNESCO accepted this nomination in 1984 on the basis of a recommendation by IUCN. The original nomination and IUCN's recommendation drew attention to the area's "exceptional natural beauty", "habitats of rare and endangered species" and its natural landforms such as mountain peaks, glaciers, lakes, canyons, limestone caves, and the unique Burgess Shale fossils. That year the UNESCO World Heritage Committee "requested the Canadian authorities to consider adding the adjacent Provincial Parks of Mount Robson, Hamber, Mount Assiniboine and Kananskis" to the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks site. At a 1990 meeting, "the Committee welcomed the Canadian proposal to include, in the Rocky Mountains Parks site, Mount Robson, Hamber and Assiniboine Provincial Parks, following its request at its Eighth Session in 1984." Kananaskis (now Peter Lougheed) Provincial Park has not been included within the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks site.
