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Unesco has named the mining landscape of Cornwall and West Devon a World Heritage Site.

Mining for cooper and tin has been happening in the area for over 2,000 years, but it is the mines, towns and ports of the 18th century that have helped to earn the area distinction.

A Unesco statement said: 'Its deep underground mines, engine houses, foundries, new towns, smallholdings, ports and harbours, and ancillary industries together reflect prolific innovation which, in the early 19th century, enabled the region to produce two thirds of the worlds supply of copper.

'The substantial remains are a testimony to the contribution Cornwall and West Devon made to the industrial revolution in the rest of Britain and to the fundamental influence the area had on the mining world at large.'

Adam Paynter, chairman of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape World Heritage Site Partnership, responded to the news of receiving the status by saying it was 'fantastic news'.

'The Cornwall and West Devon mining landscape now officially belongs to the world and we are the custodians charged with ensuring that our heritage is preserved for the enjoyment of future generations,' he added.

Other sites that have been included to the World Heritage List include the 1500-year-old irrigation systems of Oman, the ancient Iranian site of Bisotun, Poland's modernist Centennial Hall in Wroclaw and the late Iron Age rock art of Chongoni in Malawi.


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