Decision 44 COM 7B.94

Lorentz National Park (Indonesia) (N 955)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/21/44.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decisions 41 COM 7B.29 and 43 COM 7B.9, adopted at its 41st (Krakow, 2017) and 43rd (Baku, 2019) sessions respectively,
3. Reiterates its concern about the potential impacts of the Habema-Kenyam road and also expresses concern that the State Party report indicates that this road is part of the “Trans-Papuan Highway” project and that the implementation of mitigation measures for the Habema-Kenyam road has been halted whilst the road remains open for public use;
4. Urges the State Party to:
   1. Submit details of the mitigation measures that have been undertaken and that are planned for the Habema-Kenyam road to the World Heritage Centre,
   2. Close the road for public use until mitigation measures are fully implemented,
   3. Provide clarifications to the World Heritage Centre on the “Trans-Papuan Highway” and its potential impacts on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), especially its integrity, including a detailed map, a copy of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as well as the foreseen mitigation measures, as a matter of priority and before any further work is undertaken;
5. Also expresses concern about the new zoning plan of the property, which foresees a special use zone where a wide range of activities are permitted, including roads, cultivation and airport construction, and reminds the State Party that activities in any of the zones within the property that may impact on its OUV must be subject to an EIA, conducted in line with the IUCN World Heritage Advice Note on Environmental Assessment, and be submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN before any decision is made that would be difficult to reverse, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
6. Takes note of the preliminary findings of the Nothofagus tree survey along the Habema-Kenyam road and requests the State Party to submit the full findings when it becomes available;
7. Also requests the State Party to ensure that fire management, including climate change-related aspects, is incorporated into the Management Plan for the property, in order to prevent fire-related Nothofagus dieback;
8. Appreciates the ongoing patrolling activities within the property and encourages the State Party to continue these efforts;
9. Regrets that the IUCN Reactive Monitoring mission to the property could not yet be invited due to security concerns and reiterates its request to the State Party to invite this mission as soon as feasible to assess, prior to the next session of the Committee, the state of conservation of the property, in particular the state of the road projects in the property, their impacts on the OUV and the effectiveness of new zoning of the property to ensure the long-term conservation of the property’s OUV;
10. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2022, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 45th session.