Half of the world’s natural World Heritage sites are at risk from harmful industrial activities such as mining, dredging or drilling for oil, a report has warned.
Almost a third of the world’s natural World Heritage Sites face the risk of oil and gas drilling or mining, a report has warned.
In Africa, almost two-thirds (61%) of the continent’s world-renowned natural sites are under threat of exploration for fossil fuels or minerals, the study by conservation organisation WWF, Aviva Investors and Investec Asset Management found.
The 31% of World Heritage Sites under threat worldwide range from Africa’s first national park, Virunga, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, home to critically endangered mountain gorillas, to China’s Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries and Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
