The Historical Remains at Yuan Shangdu was included in the "UNESCO World Heritage List" at the 36th session of the World Heritage Committee on June 29 and became the 42th world heritage site in China.

Two days later, the Chengjiang Fossil Site in Yunnan province also was listed in the "UNESCO World Heritage List" on July 1 (St. Petersburg time), filling the blank that China did not have ancient fossil natural heritage.

Currently, China has 43 world heritage sites and ranks third in the world, second only to Italy and Spain. It undoubtedly is a glory for China that the two submissions are successfully registered in the "UNESCO World Heritage List."

The Chengjiang Fossil Site is located on the Maotian Mountain of Chengjiang county, Yuxi city, Yunnan province and about 200 fossils of rare animals were found in succession there. It is the fossil site of the "Cambrian Explosion," which is so far the most concentrated, the best preserved and the most abundant in variety and was called "one of the most astonishing discoveries in the 20th century."

The Historical Remains at Yuan Shangdu was once the center of power in the Mongol Yuan dynasty period and it now is the largest single world cultural heritage site in China, covering the its surrounding Obo group and other traditional cultural landscapes. Being included in the "UNESCO World Heritage List," these world heritage sites not only make the world see the ancient civilization of a country but also bring considerable economic benefits for local places. The world heritage sites of China are also no exception.

In the second year since the ancient city of Pingyao was listed in the "UNESCO World Heritage List," the ticket sales soared from 180,000 yuan to more than 5 million yuan. The tour income of Huangshan Mountain also skyrocketed to 200 billion yuan from original 2 million yuan since it was listed in the "UNESCO World Heritage List."

After becoming well-known, these world heritage sites also have their own troubles. The popular heritage tourism has brought economic benefits but also led to various problems. For example, the commercial operation, excessive development and constructive destruction led to the deterioration of historical and cultural landscapes and thus lost their value.

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