Dorset and East Devon (Jurassic) Coast

Location and Values:  The Dorset and East Devon Coast world heritage site encompasses eight sections along 155km of largely undeveloped coast in the south-west of England. It exhibits an outstanding combination of globally significant geological and geomorphological features covering 185 million years of the Earth’s history, with several internationally important fossil localities. It is particularly renowned for its contribution to the study and teaching of earth science for over 300 years.

Conservation Status and Prospects.  According to IUCN’s recent Conservation Outlook Assessment the conservation status of this site is ‘good’. The IUCN report notes that the ‘geological and paleontological values of the site have remained well preserved since the inscription and are very robust against most current and potential threats. The protection and management of the site is mostly effective to highly effective overall, with several examples of international best practice in World Heritage management. The overall conservation outlook for the property is good, because of the robustness of its values against anthropogenic impact, adequate boundaries and effective conservation management.’