Lençóis Maranhenses National Park, known for its rolling sand dunes strewn with emerald-like lagoons, became Brazil’s 24th UNESCO World Heritage Site on Friday, the Latin American media agency MercoPress reported.
Located in the northeastern state of Maranhão, the park sits in a transition zone between three of Brazil’s six major biomes: the tropical rainforest of the Amazon, the tropical savanna of the Cerrado and the semi-arid Caatinga – and has 80 kilometres of coastline. Lençóis means ‘bedsheets’ in Portuguese; the area was named for the white dunes covering more than half of its 157,000 hectares, said to resemble rumpled linens.
The decision to inscribe Lençóis Maranhenses National Park on UNESCO’s list was made during the 46th annual meeting of the UN World Heritage Committee, currently underway in the Indian capital of New Delhi. Its application was submitted in 2018.
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Created in June 1981, the national park plays an important role in biodiversity conservation and is highly prized for its “globally significant aesthetic and geological/geomorphological values”, according to UNESCO’s website. Its crescent-shaped, shifting dunes – called barchans – form permanent and temporary pools. These are at their most impressive during the region’s rainy season.
More than 100,000 tourists flock to see the park’s otherworldly landscape each year, though Maranhão Governor Carlos Brandão said he expected that figure to grow. “Without a doubt, this recognition will strengthen tourism and the preservation of this natural treasure of Maranhão,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “I thank the members of the Heritage Committee for their approval.”
UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay concurred, noting in her congratulations that “this impressive landscape … will benefit from the highest level of international protection.”
She also commended Brazil for its commitment to protecting its natural and cultural heritage. The country’s other World Heritage Sites include Iguaçu National Park, the Historic Centre of São Luís and the Central Amazon Conservation Complex.
