Festningen Geotope Protected Area

Festningen Geotope Protected Area is located at the outermost edge of Grønfjorden's mouth to Isfjorden on Nordenskiöld Land, Spitsbergen in Svalbard, Norway. The profile is a cliff which runs along the coast from Kapp Starostin to Festningsodden. It covers an areas of 16.6 square kilometres, of which 14 square kilometres is on land and 3 square kilometres in the sea. Barentsburg is the closest settlement, located 6 kilometres away, across Grønfjorden. Festningen was protect on 26 September 2003, as part of a major expansion of the protected areas in Svalbard. The protected areas is administrated by the Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management and the Governor of Svalbard. Festningen is a traditional name given by Norwegian hunters to the area because it looked like a natural fortress. ()