Selous Game Reserve

• Significant decline of wildlife populations due to poaching
• Insufficient funding and management
• Mineral and hydrocarbon prospecting and mining
• Tourism management and development
• Proposed dam development
• Operationalizing the uranium mining project
• Lack of disaster preparedness
• Need for buffer zone
• Need for increased involvement of local communities
• Alien invasive species

Poaching and the ensuing dramatic declines in elephant populations, and the effects thereof on the ecosystem

In progress

In progress

On 31 January 2018, the State Party submitted a report on the state of conservation of the property, available at http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/199/documents/ with the following information:

• The Selous Ecosystem Conservation and Development (SECAD) project, implemented by the State Party with the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS), WWF and funded by the German Development Bank (KfW), was launched on 17 June 2017. To date, it has mainly focused on law enforcement. Its five-year plan, still under development, will prioritize the implementation of the Emergency Action Plan (EAP) and review of the 2005–2015 General Management Plan;
• The Government of China will support capacity-building to strengthen anti-poaching efforts;
• Poaching has been significantly reduced, with the State Party reporting only five elephant carcasses in 2017 (compared to more than 100 in 2012/13);
• While the aerial census of large mammals had to be postponed until 2018, the preliminary findings of the 2017 elephant demographic study show that 90% of the counted individuals were in cow-calf groups, with 25% in the 0-5 age group. An elephant collaring programme was started as part of the SECAD project;
• The rhino monitoring launched in July 2017 indicates the presence of small numbers of rhinos;
• A draft five-year action plan developed by Tanzania and Mozambique to protect the Selous-Niassa corridor is still awaiting approval and funding;
• The State Party has confirmed its decision to develop the Stiegler’s Gorge hydropower project to address increasing energy demands;
• The implementation of the Mkuju River Uranium Mining Project has been suspended for two years as a result of the low prices for the commodity on the world market;
• A study on the flooding regime for the Kidunda dam was conducted and will be integrated in the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) and sent to the World Heritage Centre when it is available;
• The potential impacts of the Kito-1 oil and gas prospection project in the Kilombero Valley floodplain, a Ramsar site adjacent to the property, are acknowledged but test drilling did not start in 2017 because the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) had not been approved. The EIA will include a study on the hydrological regime of the floodplain.
• The draft Desired state of conservation for removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) will be submitted after the baseline data for the elephant population is in place;
• Stakeholder consultations are underway to extend the boundaries of the property to the Mbarika Mountains in line with Decision 36 COM 8B.43.

The World Heritage Centre sent two letters to the State Party: one dated 8 August 2017 regarding its decision to move ahead with the Stiegler’s Gorge dam despite the Committee’s concern, and one dated 11 September 2017 to request further information on the public bidding process to construct the dam. On 26 January 2018, the UNESCO Director-General sent a letter to the President of the United Republic of Tanzania to express concern about the dam project. On 9 May 2018, the World Heritage Centre and IUC[N] were informed about the tender document published by Tanzania Forest Service Agency on 25 April 2018 for the sale of standing trees equivalent to 143 638 ha within the property (see http://www.tfs.go.tz/en/resources/category/tenders-and-vacancies). 

Recalling the Committee’s position that the construction of dams with large reservoirs within the boundaries of World Heritage properties is incompatible with World Heritage status (Decision 40 COM 7), the recent developments related to the Stiegler’s Gorge project, and in particular the tendering of logging rights for 143 638 ha at the proposed location of the hydropower dam within the property, are of utmost concern. There is little doubt that the complete deforestation of such a large area within the property will lead to irreversible damage to its Outstanding Universal Value (OUV). In addition, various studies indicate the dam could threaten the long-term availability of water resources and have detrimental impacts on the downstream Rufiji–Mafia–Kilwa Marine Ramsar Site and the livelihoods of up to 200,000 people. In spite of a previous commitment by the State Party (Decision 38 COM 7B.95), there is no information that a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is being conducted, even though the bidding processes to identify a contractor for the dam and for the logging are underway. It is noted that Tanzanian environmental legislation also specifically requires an SEA to be undertaken for any hydropower or mining development.  As part of the approval of the boundary modification in 2012, the State Party explicitly committed to not undertake any development activities within Selous and its buffer zone without prior approval of the Committee (Decision 36 COM 8B.43).

It is therefore recommended that the Committee urge the State Party not to proceed with the planned logging and any other activities related to the Stiegler’s Gorge hydropower project, which will affect the property’s OUV and whose impacts will be difficult to reverse, prior to undertaking a comprehensive SEA to the highest international standards. The SEA should identify the cumulative impacts of the project on the property and its wider landscape, and to consider alternative options to meet Tanzania’s power generation needs. Large-scale deforestation within the property clearly represents a potential danger to the property in accordance with Paragraph 180 of the Operational Guidelines. It is therefore recommended that the Committee add this issue to the justification for the continued inclusion of the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger. It is further recommended that the Committee request the State Party to invite a joint World Heritage Centre/IUCN Reactive Monitoring Mission to the property to review the status of the Stiegler’s Gorge hydropower project, assess the state of conservation of the property and assist the State Party in finalizing the DSOCR.

The launch of the SECAD project and its contribution to the implementation of the EAP are welcomed. As it is unclear which activities are currently underway and which remain unfunded, a detailed progress report on implementation is required. The support from China is also welcomed, and it is recommended that these efforts be aligned with the EAP.

Law enforcement efforts appear to have reduced poaching, but this would have to be confirmed through detailed information on the data collection and an aerial census. Whilst the preliminary results of the elephant demographic survey show a positive reproduction rate, caution is needed to extrapolate such findings for the entire property. Details of the study and its methodology should be provided (e.g. information on the selection of the surveyed groups, comparison to previous demographic studies, and the classification used to explain why all individuals within the 0-5 age group were counted as female). As recommended by the 2017 mission, it is advisable to count the individuals younger than 1 year old as a separate age group due to their higher mortality rates. The State Party should be requested to develop a population model with the currently available data to estimate the recovery of the elephant population, assuming poaching can be reduced drastically, and to finalize the DSOCR for the Committee’s adoption. The indications that black rhino are still present in the property are encouraging, although the remaining numbers may be very low. It is urgent to collect more data to evaluate existing population size and viability, and to develop a strategy to ensure the survival of the species in the property.

Recent reports of legal hunting concessions being surrendered are noted. As trophy hunting has been generating much revenue for the property, it is critical that alternative sustainable sources of funding be identified to support anti-poaching and other conservation efforts.

It is of concern that the five-year action plan to protect the Selous-Niassa corridor is still not approved, lacks funding and has not yet been submitted to the World Heritage Centre. Urgent action is needed to secure this ecological corridor in light of the area’s demographic growth and rapid development.

It is also recommended that the Committee urge the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre the revised ESIA for the Kidunda dam, including a model for the flooding regime, as well as the ESIA for the Kito-1 oil and gas prospection project in the Kilombero valley floodplain, including a study on its hydrological regime, impacts on groundwater resources, and an assessment of potential downstream impacts on the OUV, for review by IUCN before any decisions to move forward with these projects are taken.

While the Mkuju Uranium mining project is suspended, a comprehensive ESIA should be conducted if the design of the mining project is altered and In Situ Leaching technology is applied.

The efforts to include an area in the Mbarika Mountains into the property to fulfill the commitment made by the State Party when the boundary modification was approved are noted, but no information is provided on the ecological importance of this area and how it will enhance the property’s OUV.

Finally, it is recommended that the Committee retain the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger.