UNESCO Prelims 2026 Q31: Tungurahua Volcano Geopark — Explained
Tungurahua Volcano, which was declared a Global Geopark by UNESCO in 2025, is situated in which one among the following countries?
- Ecuador
- Peru
- Bolivia
- Colombia
Answer: (a) Ecuador
Statement-wise explanation
- a: correct — Tungurahua is an active volcano in the Andes of Ecuador. The Tungurahua Volcano UNESCO Global Geopark covers 239,700 hectares in five cantons of Tungurahua and Chimborazo provinces: Baños de Agua Santa, Patate, Pelileo, Guano and Penipe. UNESCO approved it on 10 April 2025, together with Ecuador's Napo Sumaco Geopark.
- b: incorrect — Peru's best-known volcanoes are in its southern Andes, around Arequipa. Examples are El Misti and Ubinas. Tungurahua is not in Peru. It lies further north, in the Ecuadorian Andes.
- c: incorrect — Bolivia is a landlocked country of the Altiplano and the central Andes. Tungurahua is not in Bolivia. The 2025 geopark is in Ecuador's Tungurahua and Chimborazo provinces.
- d: incorrect — Colombia's best-known active volcano is Nevado del Ruiz. Its 1985 eruption buried the town of Armero. Tungurahua is south of the Colombian border, in central Ecuador.
How to eliminate
The options can't be narrowed much with general knowledge. All four countries are Andean and all have volcanoes, so the question tests whether you know this one fact. Two small clues help. First, Bolivia is landlocked and its volcanoes are mostly on the Altiplano, far from the well-known Ecuadorian volcano belt. Second, 'Tungurahua' is the name of an Ecuadorian province, which you may have seen next to Chimborazo and Cotopaxi on a map. Fact to remember: Ecuador received two UNESCO Global Geoparks in April 2025, Tungurahua Volcano and Napo Sumaco. This gave Ecuador three geoparks, the first being Imbabura.
Know more
UNESCO Global Geoparks (UGGps) are single, unified areas with geological sites of international importance. Each is managed with one plan for protection, education and sustainable development. Their rules come from the 2015 Operational Guidelines under UNESCO's International Geoscience and Geoparks Programme. A geopark is designated for four years and is then revalidated. The result is a green card (renewed for four more years), a yellow card (two years to fix problems) or a red card (status lost). Every geopark must join the Global Geoparks Network.
After 16 new sites were added in 2025, the network had 229 geoparks in 50 countries. Saudi Arabia and North Korea joined for the first time. Some of the 2025 additions:
| Geopark | Country |
|---|---|
| Tungurahua Volcano | Ecuador |
| Napo Sumaco | Ecuador |
| Kebumen, Meratus | Indonesia |
| Yunyang | China |
| Lang Son | Vietnam |
| Costa Quebrada | Spain |
| Arran | UK (Scotland) |
| The Fjord Coast | Norway |
| North Riyadh | Saudi Arabia |
Why Ecuador has so many volcanoes: The oceanic Nazca Plate is sinking (subducting) under the South American Plate. This forms a chain of tall, steep composite volcanoes (stratovolcanoes) along the Andes, part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. Tungurahua is one of them. It erupted repeatedly from 1999 to 2016. The geopark records more than 417 million years of geological history. It also includes thermal springs at Baños and the cultures of the Salasaca and Puruhá Indigenous peoples.
Geopark vs World Heritage Site: A geopark is not a World Heritage listing and is not created by a treaty. It is a bottom-up label run by local communities. World Heritage Sites are inscribed under the 1972 World Heritage Convention.
In the news
In April 2025, UNESCO approved 16 new Global Geoparks, including two in Ecuador (Tungurahua Volcano and Napo Sumaco). The network then reached 229 geoparks in 50 countries. UPSC often asks about new UNESCO designations from the year before the exam.
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Geoheritage sites: The question's 2025 hook is UNESCO naming Tungurahua a Global Geopark, a status given to areas with internationally significant geoheritage.
- Composite volcano: Tungurahua is a steep, explosive Andean stratovolcano; knowing what composite volcanoes look like helps you place it among South America's volcanic peaks.
- Ring of Fire: All four options sit on the Pacific Ring of Fire, so knowing it alone won't tell them apart; you need Tungurahua's exact location.
- Andes: Every option is an Andean country, so the question turns on which stretch of the Andes holds Tungurahua: northern, central or southern.
- Subduction zone: The Nazca Plate sinking under South America feeds volcanoes from Colombia to Bolivia, which is why all four countries look plausible.
- Plate tectonics: Plate movement explains why active volcanoes like Tungurahua, El Misti and Nevado del Ruiz line South America's western edge.