The nomination of the Hirkan Forests of Azerbaijan to the UNESCO’s World Heritage List was reviewed by the World Heritage Centre and met all of the technical requirements outlined in the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention. In accordance with the nomination procedure the complete nomination file has been sent for independent evaluation to the Advisory Body mandated by the World Heritage Convention – the World Conservation Union (IUCN). Additional information concerning the site nomination will be submitted to the IUCN in the near future.
Once the site is evaluated the intergovernmental World Heritage Committee will make the final decision on the inscription during its 28 session in Suzhou, China, 28 June – 7 July 2005.
The nomination was prepared by the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Azerbaijan Republic jointly with National Academy of Sciences of the Azerbaijan Republic, the UNESCO National Commission of the Azerbaijan Republic and the other national and international organizations.
The territory proposed for nomination is the Hirkan National Park, which is situated in south-eastern part of Azerbaijan Republic, on the coast of the Caspian Sea. The north territory of "Hirkan forest" includes a part of mountain ridges of Talish, which are remarkable for there peculiar natural components.
Hirkan, bearing the ancient name of the Caspian Sea, is a tertiary flora center and represents a huge unique diversity of flora and fauna. Hirkan forests are the most important refuges for relict forest vegetation. The Hirkan forests are the main climatic barrier and watershed between Caspian Sea and arid Iran-Turan plateau. Steep ridges of Talish mountain system and Elbruz serve as an insuperable barrier of most air accumulated above the Caspian Sea. As a result, the precipitations feed most of rivers that roll down all along steep slopes and mountain gorges and into the Caspian Sea.
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