Lunenburg makes UNESCO list of sites threatened by climate change

Lunenburg is one of 31 World Heritage sites UNESCO says is threatened by risks associated with climate change.

A new report warns higher water levels could permanently inundate some areas, and storm surges along with flooding could threaten roads and heritage buildings in the coastal town, including the popular Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic.

According to the report, tourism brings $160-million a year to Nova Scotia’s South Shore, with Lunenburg being a top destination.

They say the 31 listed natural and cultural sites are vulnerable to melting glaciers, rising seas, intensifying weather events, worsening droughts and longer wildfire seasons.

Other iconic destinations included on the list include Venice, Stonehenge, Yellowstone National Park, the Galapagos Islands, the Statue of Liberty and Easter Island.

“Some Easter Island statues are at risk of being lost to the sea because of coastal erosion,” said the report’s lead author Adam Markham. “Many of the world’s most important coral reefs, including in the islands of New Caledonia in the western Pacific, have suffered unprecedented coral bleaching linked to climate change this year.”

He added some sites could lose their World Heritage status because of climate change.

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