Waitaki Whitestone Geopark is the New Zealand’s first UNESCO Global Geopark. It lies on the east coast of the South Island, extending over an area of 7,214 km2 from the Waitaki Valley to the base of the Southern Alps. The landscapes, rivers and tides of this geopark have enormous cultural significance for the local indigenous people, the Ngāi Tahu whānui.
The geopark offers exceptional insights into the history of the Earth’s eighth continent, Zealandia, or Te Riu-a-Māui in Maori. The geopark provides evidence of the formation of Zealandia, which broke away from the ancient supercontinent of Gondwana around 80 million years ago. The continent then became submerged under the ocean for millions of years before tectonic forces thrust New Zealand above the waves and the country’s current mountain-building phase began. Today, about 94% of Zealandia remains submerged, stretching from east of New Zealand all the way north to New Caledonia.
https://www.whitestonegeopark.nz/
