Location and Values: The Uvs Nuur Basin is a complex serial site straddling the international border between Mongolia and the Russian Federation in eastern Eurasia.  The world heritage site covers 12 separate areas in a semi-arid natural basin bounded by high mountains that drain into the large saline lake of Uvs Nuur.  The 12 protected areas are representative of the major biomes of the region, varying in size from 8 km2 to 4,243 km² and covering a range of elevation from 759m to 4,116m. The 12 components are contained within an area roughly 400 km west-east and 200 km north-south between the biogeographical provinces of the Siberian Taiga, the High Altai and the Mongolian Steppe.   They support a great diversity of ecosystems including cold desert, desert-steppe, steppe, taiga, moorlands, alpine tundra, boreal, deciduous and floodplain forests, lakes, saltmarshes and snowfields.

The Uvs Nuur Lake (Lake Ubsunur) is important for migrating birds, waterfowl and seabirds, while the steppe and desert areas harbor a number of rare gerbil and jerboa species as well the marbled polecat (vulnerable to extinction). The surrounding mountains provide an important refuge for globally endangered species such as snow leopard as well as Argali mountain sheep, Siberian ibex, bearded vulture and brown bear.

Conservation Status and Prospects. According to IUCN’s Conservation Outlook Assessment (2020) the conservation status of the Uvs Nuur Basin is ‘good, with some concerns’. The IUCN report notes that conservation of the site benefits from its location in a region that is sparsely populated and lacking industrial development. However there is concern that an increase in the number of domestic livestock, overgrazing and expansion of rangelands is degrading the natural habitat of endangered species, such as the argali mountain sheep. In addition, the impacts of climate change are already apparent with significant glacial retreat and desertification. Other threats that have not yet been properly assessed include forest fires, illegal hunting, illegal logging, pollution of rivers and collection of wild plants. There are significant constraints on management effectiveness resulting from financial and staffing shortfalls.

Links:
Google Earth
Official UNESCO Site Details
IUCN Conservation Outlook
UNEP-WCMC Site Description
Birdlife IBA

Location and Values: The Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas include 15 separate areas, grouped into eight clusters in the mountainous north-west of Yunnan province, near China’s border with Myanmar. The site includes steep gorges in the upper reaches of three of Asia’s great rivers (the Yangtze, Mekong and Salween, which flow in parallel steep gorges with a similar N-S alignment in this part of their course), and the surrounding high glaciated peaks. It spans a large portion of the Hengduan Mountains, which form a huge arc curving southwards into Indochina from the eastern end of the Himalayas, where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates collide. The area exhibits an astonishing variety of landscapes, ranging in elevation from 760m to 6,740m (with 118 peaks exceeding 5,000m), including steep river gorges, exuberant forests, glaciers, dramatic snow-clad mountain peaks, lakes and meadows. It’s location at the interface between the East Asia, Southeast Asia and Tibetan biogeographical realms, together with its physical characteristics and monsoon climate has resulted in exceptional levels of biodiversity, including large numbers of rare and endangered plants and animals.

Conservation Status and Prospects. According to IUCN’s Conservation Outlook Assessment (2020) the conservation status of the Three Parallel Rivers of Yunnan Protected Areas is of ‘significant concern’. The IUCN report notes that, while the 15 protected areas and their associated buffer zones are well protected, the site is likely to be significantly impacted by the development of major hydropower schemes outside its boundaries, with planned dam construction and water transfer schemes affecting all three major rivers. These developments will result in a significant landscape transformation with important impacts on ecological connectivity between the various components of the site and the ecosystem as a whole. On a more positive note, the IUCN report commends the recent closure of active mines within the site (and its buffer zone), as well as the permanent suspension of mineral exploration and extraction permits. Other ‘high level threats’ affecting the site include poaching, illegal wildlife trade and tensions between local communities and management authorities. This is a large and unusually complex serial site which requires a high level of management coordination and planning across its various component parts, which is not yet fully in place.

Links:
Google Earth
Official UNESCO Site Details
IUCN Conservation Outlook
UNEP-WCMC Site Description
Birdlife IBA

Location and Values: Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs) covers a vast expanse of spectacular glaciated mountains, high alpine desert and lakes lying at the centre of the so-called ‘Pamir Knot’, a meeting point of the highest mountain ranges on the Eurasian continent. The Pamir (meaning ‘Roof of the World’ in Farsi) is the third highest mountain range in the world (after the Himalaya and Karakoram mountains), with several peaks above 7,000m including the highest (Peak Somoni) at 7,495m. It lies in one of the most tectonically active regions of the world where the enormous tectonic forces arising from the collision of the Indian-Australian Plate and the Eurasian Plate have thrown up the high mountain ranges that radiate out in all directions from the Pamir Mountains.
The area is recognized on the world heritage list for its outstanding value to our understanding of earth building processes, plate tectonics and subduction phenomena. These processes have given rise to some exceptional natural phenomena, notably (1) the creation of a very high, deep lake (Lake Sarez) impounded a century ago by a severe earthquake that resulted in a massive landslide that filled a valley and created a huge natural dam, and (2) the world’s longest glacier outside the Polar regions (Fedchenko Glacier). Another lake within the site (Lake Karakal) is reckoned to be the world’s highest large lake created from a meteor impact.

Conservation Status and Prospects. According to IUCN’s Conservation Outlook Assessment (2020) the conservation status of the Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs) is ‘good’. The IUCN report notes that the large size, alpine wilderness character and low resident population ensure that threats from human activities are minor and localized. The main potential threat is climate change which is contributing to the rapid melting of glaciers and may alter the ecological character of the site in the long term. Of more immediate concern is the harvesting of the slow-growing teresken plant for household fuel, as this is leading to denudation of wide areas in the fragile semi-desert environment. Livestock grazing and local community use of natural resources is permitted in designated zones, but there is a risk that this could exceed the limits of sustainable use.

Links:
Google Earth
Official UNESCO Site Details
IUCN Conservation Outlook
UNEP-WCMC Site Description
Birdlife IBA

Location and Values: The Western Tien-Shan world heritage site lies in central Asia, at the western end of the magnificent Tian Shan mountain range, one of the seven largest mountain ranges in the world. It is a serial site that includes 13 separate components spread across seven reserves in the border area shared by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan & Uzbekistan. The reserves cover an enormous diversity of habitats and range in altitude from 700m to over 4,500m. The site is especially important as one of 12 global centres of origin for agrobiodiversity, providing habitat for the wild progenitors of various nuts, fruits, cereals, spices and other cultivated plants. It also supports a significant diversity of temperate plants and animals, including 61 species of mammals and 316 species of birds. These include some globally threatened species, such as the eastern imperial eagle, great bustard, snow leopard, dhole and Menzbier’s marmot.

Conservation Status and Prospects. According to IUCN’s Conservation Outlook Assessment (2017) the conservation status of the Western Tien-Shan is of ‘significant concern’. The IUCN report notes that the boundaries of the component reserves and their buffer zones need to be re-assessed and modified to ensure that they follow ecological principles and address landscape connectivity requirements. There is further concern over the very limited level of transboundary cooperation in management and the lack of a cohesive and integrated approach to the management of the various component parts. Nevertheless, despite these shortcomings, IUCN recognizes that the protection and management of the individual reserves appears to be adequate and threats are currently at a low level. The main pressures on the world heritage site are low-level poaching, cattle grazing, illegal logging, hay collection and illegal harvesting of flowers.

Links:
Google Earth
UNESCO Official Website
IUCN Conservation Outlook
UNEP-WCMC Site Description
Birdlife IBA