World Canals Conference 2008

World Heritage Site

A UNESCO World Heritage Site is either a natural or cultural place of sufficient importance to be the responsibility of the international community as a whole. What makes the concept of World Heritage exceptional is its universal applications. World Heritage sites belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located.

State Parties who are part of UNESCO’s convention pledge to care for World Heritage Sites in their territory and to avoid deliberate measures that could damage World Heritage Sites in other countries.  As such, the World Heritage List serves as a tool for conservation. There are currently 830 sites of cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value inscribed on the World Heritage List.

Rideau Canal World Heritage Designation
The Rideau Canal, including Fort Henry and the Kingston Fortifications, was nominated by Canada for inscription on the World Heritage List in January 2006. A property nominated for inclusion on the World Heritage List is considered to be of outstanding universal value when the World Heritage Committee finds that it meets one or more of ten criteria.

The Rideau Canal, including Fort Henry and the Kingston Fortifications, officially joined this prestigious list during the 31st session of the World Heritage Committee held in June 2007 in Christchurch, New Zealand.

The Rideau Canal was inscribed under two criteria:

1. Criterion i:  The Rideau Canal remains the best preserved example of a slackwater canal in North America demonstrating the use of European slackwater technology in North America on a large scale.  It is the only canal dating from the great North American canal-building era of the early 19th century that remains operational along its original line with most of its original structures intact.

1. Criterion iv:  The Rideau Canal is an extensive, well preserved and significant example of a canal which was used for military purposes linked to a significant stage in human history – that of the fight to control the north of the American continent.

The Rideau Canal World Heritage Site includes the Rideau Canal, Fort Henry and the Kingston Fortifications.  The Government of Canada, through the Parks Canada Agency, owns the canal, but relies heavily on partners and stakeholders to provide ongoing stewardship of the canal and its shoreline.