John Calder's work was key to Joggins UNECSO designation

Joggins Fossil Cliffs designated World Heritage Site in Nova Scotia

Amherst, N.S. (9 July 2008) - The declaration of the Joggins Fossil Cliffs in Nova Scotia as a World Heritage Site is a victory for everyone associated with the initiative, including Dr. John H. Calder, a geologist with the department of natural resources and a member of the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU/NUPGE).

Calder's work as a member of NSGEU's Local 8 was instrumental in the campaign that led to the announcement of the decision at meetings this week in Quebec City by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The nomination was submitted in February 2007. Experts from the International Union for Conservation of Nature visited the site for six days last fall. The official declaration culminates more than 10 years of work by Calder and many others.

The nomination was based on three areas:
? The fossil record, which includes some of the earliest terrestrial four-legged creatures, and both animal and plant remains from vast Coal-Age swamps, all preserved in their ecological context.
? The large 15-kilometre area of sea cliffs that expose more than 25 million years of geological history.
? The contributions that the cliffs have made to some notable scientific ideas, including the theory of evolution in Darwin's Origin of Species.

Joggins joins the town of Lunenburg as the second Nova Scotia World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO. It also joins a select group of other important fossil sites in Canada that have also achieved the same rare UNESCO designation, including Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta, the Burgess Shale in British Columbia and Miguasha National Park in the Gaspe region of Quebec.

Praise from premier

"The Joggins Fossil Cliffs are one of Nova Scotia's, and the world's, great natural treasures," said Premier Rodney MacDonald. "The cliffs provide the best record in the world of the geological history of the coal age, and are truly a world-class heritage resource."

The designation recognizes the outstanding universal value of the Joggins Cliffs, which preserve the most complete record in the world of terrestrial life in the Pennsylvanian Coal Age. The cliffs and their fossils, continually exposed in the Bay of Fundy by the world's highest tides, have long been a cornerstone in understanding of the evolution of life and earth's history.

"I am pleased and proud of the outstanding efforts of Dr. John Calder and others who demonstrate to the world the outstanding significance of the Joggins Fossil Cliffs," said Natural Resources Minister David Morse. "This recognition speaks to the dedicated work of provincial geoscientists and their colleagues in documenting the outstanding geological significance of the site."

The designation is expected to attract a large number of new visitors to the area, especially given the fact that The Joggins Fossil Centre, built with Nova Scotia materials and opened in April, is already attracting widespread interest. The centre was funded by the federal, provincial and municipal governments. NUPGE