“The volcanoes of Jingpohu have erupted at least three times in the last 12,000 years”
Celebrating Earth Heritage
Jingpohu UNESCO Global Geopark is situated in Ning'an of southeastern Heilongjiang, 97 kilometers north of Mudanjiang. The Geopark is centered on Jingpohu Mountain villa, west from Daganpao, east to Bohai village, south from Nanhutou and north to Hamatang.
Jingpohu UNESCO Global Geopark is located at the north section of the Cenozoic magmatic rock zone in Eastern China, on the west side of the largest fault zone in Asia – Tancheng (a county in Shandong Province) – Lujiang Fault (Tan-Lu Fault for short, -2400km). It is one of the most significant volcano fields in Eastern China where volcanic activity lasted from Tertiary to Quaternary. Around Daganpao at the northwestern park distributes Jingbo volcanoes erupting three times from 5140 years to 12000 years before present, with 4 multiple volcanic cones and a single volcanic cone, 12 craters in total. The volcanic scenery is preserved intact, with integral and typical volcanic geological phenomena. The natural volcanic geological heritage is rare nationwide. Therefore, the establishment of Jingpohu UNESCO Global Geopark is of important scientific significance to research on structural evolution of the Cenozoic in Eastern China, activity history of Tan-Lu Fault, interaction between different geological layers of the globe, dynamic mechanics of volcanic eruption and environmental effects of volcanic eruption. Geological relics in Jingpohu UNESCO Global Geopark can be divided into three types: volcanic geological relics, waterscape geological relics and granite geological relics.
The Geopark is abundant in resources, with about 30 lakes of Mudan River systems. The vegetation in the Geopark is well preserved, with more than 90% of coverage rate. There are also sufficient mineral and animal plant resources in the Geopark.
Sustaining local Communities
In the Jingpohu UNESCO Global Geopark, practical facilities have been built with China University of Geosciences (Wuhan), Mudanjiang Normal College, Jilin Technology College of Electronic Information and Beijing Normal University School of Geography. A science teaching facility has been built with Dongjing Town Middle School. Scientific galleries also have been built in Jingpohu Villa, Crater, Waterfalls Village and Dongjing Town Middle School. Meanings and methods of protection of geological relics and geological scientific knowledge have been publicized through tour description, signboards and media coverage. Tour guide training, picture shows on volcanic knowledge, expert consultation, field visits and expert illustrations onsite have also been conducted. The park always insists on “Protection first” in development of the park and insists on harmony and uniformity of economic benefits, social benefits and environmental benefits. A strict protection mechanism has been established, which has protected the natural and human landscape of the park effectively in order to realize sustainable development.
