The first inter-regional heritage between two provinces and cities At 5:40 p.m. on September 16, 2023 local time (9:00 p.m. on September 16, Vietnam time) in Riyadh, the capital of the Republic of Saudi Arabia, UNESCO officially recognized Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago as a World Natural Heritage. This is the first inter-regional heritage between two provinces and cities in Vietnam. Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago is located in the Northeast of Vietnam, known as the "pearl of the Gulf of Tonkin", with majestic mountains and forests and vast islands. The natural areas have a core area of ​​65,650 hectares, a buffer zone of 34,140 hectares. Ha Long Bay belongs to Quang Ninh province and Cat Ba Archipelago belongs to Hai Phong city. This place owns many important national and international titles such as: Ha Long Bay Special National Monument; Cat Ba Archipelago Special National Monument; Cat Ba National Park; Lan Ha Bay is one of the most beautiful bays in the world; marine reserve; Cat Ba Archipelago world biosphere reserve; Ha Long Bay world natural heritage (1994 and 2000).
Cruise on Lan Ha Bay.
Cat Ba Archipelago was ranked as a special national scenic spot in 2013. Ha Long Bay was also honored to be recognized by UNESCO as a World Natural Heritage for the second time in 2020. Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, because it contains areas of natural beauty including limestone islands covered with vegetation and limestone peaks rising above the sea. The spectacular untouched landscape of the islands covered with vegetation, saltwater lakes, limestone peaks with vertical cliffs rising above the sea. With 1,133 limestone islands of various shapes and sizes (775 limestone islands in Ha Long Bay and 358 limestone islands in Cat Ba Archipelago) covered with rich vegetation on the sparkling emerald water, Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago appears like a chessboard of precious stones; peaceful, overlapping mountains and rivers; fine, pristine white sand beaches. Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago is considered a geological museum, containing heritages with outstanding global value, witnessing the characteristic changes in the history of the development of the Earth. The Ha Long - Cat Ba sea area includes many terrigenous and carbonate sedimentary systems, ranging in age from the Paleozoic to the Cenozoic. Many sedimentary systems in this area contain paleontological traces in various fossil forms, including groups of animals and plants that have become extinct or nearly extinct on earth... With the intersection of mountains, forests and islands, Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago is a typical area with a high level of diversity in Asia when possessing 7 adjacent, successively developing tropical and subtropical marine - island ecosystems, including: primary tropical rainforest ecosystem; cave ecosystem; mangrove forest ecosystem; tidal flat ecosystem; coral reef ecosystem; soft bottom ecosystem; saltwater lake ecosystem. These ecosystems represent ecological and biological processes that are still evolving and developing, reflected in the diversity of flora and fauna communities. Possessing the largest marine forest in Vietnam with an area of ​​over 17,000 hectares and diverse ecosystems, Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago is also home to 4,910 terrestrial and marine species of flora and fauna, of which 198 species are listed in the IUCN Red List, 51 are endemic. The area of ​​primary forest of about 1,045.2 hectares on Cat Ba Island is one of the important factors contributing to the ecological value and biodiversity of the nominated area. In particular, the Cat Ba langur (Trachypithecus poliocephalus) is a rare species, listed as one of the most endangered animals and listed in the World Red Book. To date, there are only about 60-70 individuals distributed in Cat Ba, this species is nowhere else in the world. Cooperation in preserving the heritage of Cat Ba Archipelago to become a World Heritage Site is also expected to contribute to promoting economic, cultural and social development, improving the quality of life of Cat Ba people, promoting and enhancing the image and position of the country, attracting investment in ecological economy.
Ha Long Bay.
The expansion of the Ha Long Bay World Natural Heritage to include Cat Ba Archipelago will increase the inherent value of the heritage, demonstrated through the harmony of landscape, geology, geomorphology, ecosystem and diversity of flora and fauna. The outstanding global values ​​of the area are determined to include physical and biological formations, geological and geographical formations and the habitat of threatened flora and fauna from an aesthetic, scientific and conservation perspective. However, the world natural heritage is also facing many challenges, including waste from the waterfall. Recently, a large amount of styrofoam and plastic waste used to raise oysters and barnacles were discharged into the sea during the dismantling and relocation of cages in Ha Long Bay and Lan Ha Bay. This has seriously affected the landscape and environment of the world natural heritage; at the same time, it also hinders the movement of ships and boats on the routes. Exploiting the potential of heritage but not forgetting the task of protecting and preserving heritage, therefore, the concern about seawater pollution is an issue that these two localities need to pay attention to and focus on in the process of cooperation and development in a systematic and long-term manner. According to Vice Chairman of Hai Phong City People's Committee Hoang Minh Cuong, the city will sign a specific agreement with Quang Ninh province on planning, protecting heritage, promoting and promoting the value of heritage to domestic and international friends. Ms. Nguyen Thuy Yen, Deputy Director of Quang Ninh Department of Tourism affirmed that Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago was officially recognized by UNESCO as a world natural heritage, creating a unique inter-provincial tourist destination. In the coming time, the two localities will preserve and promote the value of heritage while stepping up promotion and advertising to stimulate tourism, strongly attract investment and develop heritage values. From there, Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba Archipelago will become attractive destinations for domestic and foreign tourists. The peak season for international visitors in Vietnam is beginning. With Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba archipelago recognized as a World Natural Heritage, along with a flexible e-visa policy, the tourism industry hopes to create attraction, helping the number of international visitors to grow strongly this year. Source: https://dangcongsan.vn/quang-ninh-co-hoi-dau-tu-va-phat-trien-ben-vung/quang-ninh-vung-buoc-tuong-lai/khang-dinh-vi-the-vinh-ha-long-quan-dao-cat-ba-tren-ban-do-du-lich-the-gioi-647284.html