The Hantan River area near the inter-Korean border has been designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark.

The Gyeonggi provincial government on Tuesday said the U.N. body decided to add the 1,165-square-kilometer area to the list during a meeting in Paris.

The geopark includes the Hantan River, which rises from Pyonggang County in North Korea, as well as the overlap area of the Imjin River, and was formed hundreds of thousands of years ago by a volcanic explosion, creating basalt cliffs and waterfalls among various other geographical features.

The designation has raised the number of South Korean geoparks on the list to four, including the southern island of Jeju, Cheongsong in the southeast and Mount Mudeung in the southwest.

Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung said, "We will put special efforts into cooperation with related agencies for the river area's preservation and development so it can become an attraction that represents South Korea."

There are currently some 140 sites from 40 countries on the UNESCO Global Geoparks list.

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