World's finest tech sites immortalised

NEWS

They may have transformed man's understanding of the universe but the monumental impact of the world's first large radio telescope and the planet's largest particle physics lab has never been fully recognised.

Now both Jodrell Bank and Cern are among the technological landmarks that could be immortalised alongside the pyramids of Egypt and Taj Mahal on Unesco's World Heritage Site (WHS) list.

The UK National Commission for Unesco and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are hosting a three-day workshop to set the framework for creating future World Heritage Sites that mark advances in science and technology.

Experts on the history of science and world heritage from 15 countries are taking part in the London-based sessions to create the framework, which is expected to stimulate a surge in the number of science and technology heritage sites across the world.

Scientific locales such as the Struve Geodetic Arc and the Royal Observatory in Greenwich are among the few such sites already included in the 851 WHS list, marking places of outstanding natural or cultural importance.

The new framework aims to make it easier to recognise locations that played an important role in engineering and technology, astronomy and the physical and biological sciences.

Potential and existing tech World Heritage Sites

• Jodrell Bank Observatory - Cheshire, UK

• CERN - Geneva, French Swiss border

• Struve Geodetic Arc (Existing WHS)

• Varberg Radio Station - Grimeton, Sweden (Existing WHS)

• Samarkand Observatory - Uzbekistan (Existing WHS)

Christopher Young, head of world heritage and international policy for English Heritage and member of the culture committee of the UK National Commission for Unesco, said: "I think it will help create new science and technology sites from around the world.

"There could be a physical link with a certain discovery to that site, notable places of science such as a laboratory or observatory or maybe a biological or geological link where a discovery has come out of a particular landscape formation such as the Devon and East Dorset Coast."

He added: "For example, Jodrell Bank as the first large radio telescope is the type of achievement we would want to commemorate. A World Heritage Site must have outstanding universal value, an importance to all humanity."

If the framework is adopted it will take several years before it helps lead to the creation of new science and tech WHS.

To create a new WHS, member states belonging to the World Heritage Convention can submit sites for a tentative list, which is then revised with the help of public consultation before the sites are finally adopted.

The conclusions of the expert meeting will be presented to the World Heritage Committee for consideration at its next meeting in July in Quebec, Canada.