Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park

Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park
Национальный парк «Беловежская пуща»  (Russian)
Natsionalny park "belovezhskaya pushcha"  (Russian)
Нацыянальны парк Белавежская пушча  (Belarusian)
Natsyyanal’ny park Byelavyezhskaya pushcha  (Belarusian)
IUCN category II (national park)

Part of the forest at Pererov, Brest Region
Location Brest Region and Grodno Region in Belarus
Coordinates 52°35′7.66″N 23°52′44.86″E / 52.5854611°N 23.8791278°E / 52.5854611; 23.8791278Coordinates: 52°35′7.66″N 23°52′44.86″E / 52.5854611°N 23.8791278°E / 52.5854611; 23.8791278
Area 1,500.69 km2 (579.42 sq mi)(2015)
Established 11 August 1932
Governing body Ministry of the Environment
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Białowieża Forest, Belarus, Poland
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List

European bison in the natural habitat
Type Natural
Criteria ix,x
Reference 33
UNESCO region Europe
Inscription history
Inscription 1979 (3rd Session)
Extensions 1992, 2014
Location in Belarus

Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park (Russian, official:[1][2][3] Национальный парк «Беловежская пуща», Belarusian: Нацыянальны парк Белавежская пушча) is a national park within parts of the Brest Region (Kamyanyets and Pruzhany districts) and Grodno Region (Svislach district) in Belarus adjacent to the border with Poland. It is a preserved part of the UNESCO WHS Białowieża Forest, Belarus, Poland, the last primaeval forest fragment of the Europe's woodlands, that once stretched across the European Plain. It is home to a large population of European bison the continent's heaviest land animals. The border between the two countries runs through the forest, the Białowieża National Park is on the Polish side of the border. Within the forest since May 2015, there is a visa-free regime for hikers and cyclists at the border crossing Pererov-Białowieża.[4]

Geography

The Belovezhskaya Pushcha Biosphere Reserve occupies the area of 216,200 ha (2,162 km2; 835 sq mi) (2015), subdivided into transition, buffer and core zones.[5] The National Park occupies 150,069 ha (1,500.69 km2; 579.42 sq mi) (2015).[6] It is located 70 km (43 mi) north of Brest. The Nature Reserves and the National Parks cover 2.7% of the Brest Region territory and 2.6% of the Grodno Region.[7]

History

In the Second Polish Republic most of the Białowieża Forest was declared a national park on 11 August 1932. After World War II, the forest was divided in accordance with the Polish–Soviet border agreement of August 1945 between the People's Republic of Poland and the Byelorussian SSR of the Soviet Union. Poland reopened the Białowieża National Park in 1947.

The park's headquarters are at Kamyanyuki. In 2009, the Belovezhskaya Pushcha NP celebrated 600th anniversary of the reserve status. All hotels, cafes were rebuilt, new ones appeared in this park. The Eco Education Center was built that houses the Museum of Nature. Annually, about 300,000 people come to see the Pushcha.[8]

References

  1. ↑ Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park – Official Website of the Republic of Belarus
  2. ↑ Belovezhskaya pushcha – Belarusian ministry of foreign affairs
  3. ↑ "Białowieża Forest, Belarus, Poland" at the UNESCO official webpage. Retrieved May 27, 2015.
  4. ↑ Regulations on visiting Belovezhskaya Pushcha by foreign tourists approved in Belarus Archived June 29, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
  5. ↑ The structure of the Biosphere Reserve Belovezhskaya Pushcha.
  6. ↑ "About the National Park". Retrieved 2015-05-27.
  7. ↑ "Nature reserves and national parks, wildlife preserves and nature sanctuaries". Land of Ancestors. Data of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus. 2011. Retrieved 29 November 2013.
  8. ↑ Belovezhskaya Pushcha celebrates 600th anniversary of its reserve status.

External links

Media related to Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park at Wikimedia Commons

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