Decision 38 COM 7B.69

Chitwan National Park (Nepal) (N 284)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 28 COM 15B.11, adopted at its 28th session (Suzhou, 2004),
3. Welcomes the reported success of anti-poaching measures as indicated by two recent years of zero rhino poaching (2011 and 2013), as well as the reported strong community support for the conservation of the property;
4. Notes with concern the reported plans for the East-West Electric Railroad and the Tarai Hulaki Highway crossing the property and that construction of bridges related to the highway project is reported to have started in the buffer zone of the national park, and considers that these projects, if implemented as planned through the property, would represent a clear potential dangerto the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, including through habitat fragmentation, wildlife disturbance and an increased risk of poaching and other illegal activities;
5. Notes with appreciation the advice sought by the State Party’s consultants on the application of IUCN’s World Heritage Advice Note on Environmental Assessment;
6. Requests the State Party to ensure that Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) for both projects are completed in conformity with IUCN’s Advice Note, including an assessment of cumulative impacts and alternative alignments that do not cross the property, and also requests the State Party to submit these EIAs and further details on the proposed projects to the World Heritage Centre, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines ;
7. Further requests the State Party to put on hold any construction of infrastructure that could preclude the viability of alternative alignments that would avoid the property, until the EIA processes for both projects have been completed;
8. Requests furthermore the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2015, a report, including a 1-page executive summary, on the state of conservation of the property, on the status of the above infrastructure projects, and on the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session in 2015.