South China Karst

• Management systems/management plan (property-wide management plan not yet finalized, actions to manage tourism, water quality, agricultural and urban development impacts not implemented)
• Governance (Integrated governance arrangements not implemented)

On 26 November 2020, the State Party submitted a state of conservation report, a summary of which is available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1248/documents/ and reports the following progress:

• Through joint efforts from the site administrations of the seven component parts of the property, the 2016-2025 Conservation and Management Plan of South China Karst World Natural Heritage Site (CMP-SCK) is being implemented and closely monitored, leading to positive outputs in environmental protection, tourism management, community development, publicity and education, and resource conservation;
• Continued efforts to address water pollution, e.g. the establishment of a wastewater treatment system, have shown an improvement in water quality in certain locations within the property;
• A visitor carrying capacity has been set to mitigate potential threats from tourism, and scrutiny of tourism facilities has led to the relocation of some visitor centres to outside of the property;
• Ecological restoration of agricultural land within the property has been advanced in the framework of the CMP-SCK;
• Remote sensing for the monitoring of the property is being more widely used, e.g. to detect illegal construction and ecological damage;
• The Guiyang-Nanning High-speed Railway crossing the Buffer Zone of Libo Karst is under construction and expected to complete by December 2023. The Environmental Management Plan is being followed to ensure that there is no negative impact on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property. The anticipated increase in visitor numbers upon completion will be managed in line with the carrying capacity limits;
• Any future relocation of communities within the World Heritage property will be carried out in strict compliance with the 2015 Sustainable Development Policy and relevant international standards.

Positive progress is being reported with the implementation of the CMP-SCK through the administrative organizations of the seven component parts of the property, established following an institutional reform at the national, provincial and site levels in 2018. The results reported to date are welcomed, notably the improved water quality and the use of remote sensing to further support the monitoring and management of the property.

The measures taken to address any negative impact on the buffer zone of the Libo Karst component due to the Guiyang-Nanning High-speed Railway, currently under construction, are noted. However, no progress is reported on efforts to address the potential impact of invasive alien species, as requested by the Committee.

Recalling the Committee’s previous concerns about tourism impacts on this property, it is positive that a visitor carrying capacity limit has now been set, and that the operation of the Guiyang-Nanning High-speed Railway will be managed within these limits. It remains important for the State Party to also ensure that the distribution of visitor pressure is monitored and sustainably managed. Tourism is a major source of income for local communities, including Wukeshu, and therefore it remains critical that ongoing development balances the importance of sustainable, tourism-based livelihoods for local communities against the potential for negative impacts associated with tourism on the property’s OUV. The State Party is therefore encouraged to seek advice from the UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme (https://whc.unesco.org/en/tourism/) and prepare a Sustainable Tourism and Development Strategy for the property.

It is welcome that the State Party has formulated strict working procedures and steps to achieve prior consent, effective consultation, fair compensation, access to social welfare and skills training, and the right to retain traditional culture and customs amongst populations under the relocation programme in Wukeshu Village. The State Party’s commitment to ensuring that any future relocation within a World Heritage property will occur strictly in compliance with the 2015 Policy Document on the Integration of a Sustainable Development Perspective into the Processes of the World Heritage Convention and relevant international standards should be welcomed.