In a major coup for the country, Tasmania's southern eucalypt forests and Great Western Tiers have been awarded the highest level of global recognition for environmental value, listing on the UN World Heritage register.

The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area has been extended, which should lead to better protection and greater support for one of the country’s prime environmental assets.

The announcement is validation of decades of works for Tasmanian environmentalists, who have been campaigning for the reservation since the 1970s. The Wilderness Society’s Vica Bayley, from a meeting in Cambodia, said “We welcome the decision of the Committee and congratulate and thank each and every person who has participated in the campaign to see these areas protected over the decades of struggle and advocacy... if you have walked in these forests, written a letter for these forests, attended a rally, a protest, a meeting, or donated to these campaigns, this couldn’t have happened without you.”

Recognition on the World Heritage list is a direct follow-on from the efforts of thousands in creating the Tasmanian Forest Agreement, campaigners say they’re pushing ahead to better protect more Tasmanian natural icons such as the Blue Tier, Bruny Island, the Tarkine, and Weilangta forests.