Anchorage Daily News

WASILLA -- Denali National Park and Preserve officials scrapped plans Thursday to apply for an international designation as a world heritage site.

Park Superintendent Paul Anderson said Thursday that the National Park Service withdrew the request because of concerns that they could not meet a March deadline without gathering hoped-for support, including from the Legislature.

Anderson said opposition to the idea did not play a role in the decision.

"If we had more time and could have gotten going on it earlier, we could have moved it through state government and Legislature office," he said. "Certainly we will save the application for the next time to apply for (the) list."

Park Service officials described the designation as an honor that could attract more visitors, especially from foreign tourists more familiar with world heritage sites than U.S. national parks.

A designation as a World Heritage Site, conferred by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, recognizes sites with international cultural or natural significance.

Worldwide, the list covers more than 800 sites, from ancient temples in Cambodia to mountain ranges in Canada. U.S. sites on the list include the Statue of Liberty, the Grand Canyon and two sites in Alaska: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve and Glacier Bay National Park. The proposed Denali listing would have encompassed the original 2 million acres of the 6 million-acre park.

"Certainly it's a recognition that puts (Denali) on a par with other globally significant sites," Anderson said in an earlier interview.

The request had many supporters, including the Denali and Matanuska-Susitna boroughs, tour companies such as Princess Tours and Holland America, and several other groups including the Talkeetna Community Council and Native Village of Cantwell.

But it also drew opposition from some who feared the designation could quash development around the park or, worse, cede control of the site to a foreign government.

Executive director Steve Borell of Alaska Miners Association said he worried the designation would stifle development around the park. He wrote the Alaska congressional delegation asking it to investigate the request.

He said he envisioned a scenario in which activists worldwide would cite the listing as a reason to ban activities such as mining, even outside the park.

That happened at Yellowstone National Park, where a proposed gold mine near the park was shelved in 1996 after opposition that included arguments the development was not appropriate next to a world heritage site, he said.

"I say it's not worth the risk," he said.

While there's not much active mining around Denali, there is potential for gold, diamond and coal development, Borell said.

Some pro-business residents also found themselves opposed to the idea and questioned the need for more advertising for what is already one of the state's most visited parks.

Suzy Kellard, president of the Talkeetna Chamber of Commerce, said while the group favored the proposal by a 5-4 vote, too many questions remained for her about how it would affect development.

"With all their past statements about how overcrowded it is ... why do you want this other special gold star?" she said.

Anderson, however, said fears were misplaced.

The listing would add no new park rules and certainly wouldn't change park management, he said.

The two other Alaska parks have been world heritage sites for more than 10 years and neither has experienced impacts from that listing, he said.

In addition, Denali itself is already on the United Nations biosphere reserve list, which recognizes places of natural significance, he said.

As for more visitors, Anderson said some park services are overburdened but room exists for growth.

He also noted that the earliest the site could have been placed on the world heritage list was 2009, close to the time when a visitor center on the south side of Denali is expected to open.

That center will accommodate more park users.

Park Service officials in Alaska submitted the proposal to the agency's Washington, D.C., office. But the proposal needed approval from the Park Service director and the U.S. Interior Department before it went to the World Heritage Commission, Anderson said.

He said the Park Service realized this week that they had no time to seek legislative support before the deadline to forward a list of sites to the Interior Department. Support is not required but would give the proposal a better chance, he said.

He said he did not know when the Park Service would resubmit an application for a possible heritage-site listing.

Reporter S.J. Komarnitsky can be reached at skomarnitsky@adn.com or 352-6714.