AROUND 300 million years ago, the North Pennines lay near the equator, where it was periodically submerged by warm tropical seas.

As it turns out, that was but the start of the story for the mineral-rich, first class site of geological interest that has just been granted international recognition.

It is one of seven such areas in the UK to be anointed a Global Geopark by UNESCO, a move that puts them on an equal footing with the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, such as Hadrian’s Wall.

They are part of a growing international network of geoparks that use their unique geology to drive local development and tourism, said Chris Woodley-Stewart, director of the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Partnership.

“This is the first new heritage programme to be introduced by UNESCO since the world heritage sites were created 43 years ago,” he said.

“The fact geoparks are now part of the UNESCO family is a big opportunity to bring a globally recognised brand to the North Pennines.”

The partnership will be working with businesses, particularly those in tourism, to market the brand and with schools keen to teach children all about their natural environment.

They might well end up yearning for the North Pennines that once was! Chris said: “It had a climate like the modern day Bahamas.”

During the Carboniferous period, between 360 and 300 million years ago, sea levels rose periodically to cover the land.

“There were billions of sea creatures living in what was a shallow tropical sea and when they died, the hard shells of their bodies sank to the bottom and formed a limey ooze.

“Over time, that turned into the limestone that is such a feature of the North Pennines today.”

That other prime feature of the Northern landscape – the Whin Sill – is a bit younger.

The stretching of the earth’s crust 295 million years ago caused molten rock to rise up and spread out between the layers of carboniferous rock.

It cooled and solidified underground to form the Whin Sill, a vast sheet of hard, dark dolerite (or whinstone) that stretches in a band from the Farne Islands down to Richmond in North Yorkshire.

“Where the layers of limestone, sandstone and shale have been worn away, you can see the whinstone on the surface,” said Chris.

“It’s similar rock to that of the Giant’s Causeway in Ireland, but that cooled on the surface, so it has a perfect hexagonal structure.

“Here it cooled off underground, so even though it has the same hexagonal structure, it isn’t pronounced in the places where you can see it.”

He is simply scratching the surface with this type of information, he says – there is plenty more to tell.

But if businesses and tourism initiatives are going to harness the story the North Pennines has to tell, they will have to make a conscious decision to do so.

“There is a fantastic natural heritage here, but they have to get behind the Global Geopark mark and promote it as an additional attraction and another reason to visit the North-East,” he said.

“We want to use this to generate new opportunities, but it will only really work if the tourism community gets on board.”

The partnership’s own programme over the next four years includes developing new downloadable walking trails, community geology projects and educational material for local schools.

Welcoming the creation of the Global Geopark status, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Environment and Rural Affairs, Rory Stewart, said: “This is the most fantastic news. It gives us a great international profile.

“Connecting our geological heritage and, literally, our bedrock with our community and economy is a very exciting opportunity.

“The work geoparks do locally, and their new UNESCO status, could inspire people for years to come.”