Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area

• Air pollution
• Ground transport infrastructure
• Impacts of tourism / visitor / recreation
• Surface water pollution
• Site to be overrun with tourist facilities (issue resolved)
• Several parts of the site severely impacted by floods in 1998 (issue resolved)
• Plan for rehabilitation of damaged areas required (issue resolved)

On 26 November 2020, the State Party submitted a state of conservation report, a summary of which is available at http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/640/documents/ and provides information as follows:

• No new road, cable car, elevator or electric railway infrastructure project has been developed in the property since March 2015. The only projects that have been approved and undertaken relate to improvement of existing infrastructure facilities, such as waste treatment methods of tourist toilets, maintenance of path handrails, and updating the indoor exhibitions of the Zhangjiajie Global Geopark Museum.
• The revision of the Overall Plan of Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area (2005-2020) is still in progress. The delay in the formulation of the Plan is due to an ongoing national reform in the protected area system and further delays associated with COVID-19. The revised draft plan will be submitted to the World Heritage Centre as soon as it is available.
• The number of visitors to the property decreased greatly in 2020 due to the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. The final Sustainable Tourism and Development Strategy of the property is annexed to the state of conservation report and was undertaken as part of a pilot study (2015-2020) identifying the main issues and potential solutions for sustainable tourism in Wulingyuan, carried out by the World Heritage Institute of Training and Research for the Asia and the Pacific Region (WHITR-AP/Shanghai) and in alignment with the objectives of the UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme.
• The State Party has made efforts towards positive engagement with local communities during the relocation programmes, in line with the 2015 Policy Document on the Integration of a Sustainable Development Perspective into the Processes of the World Heritage Convention, ensuring effective consultation and fair compensation. Activities included research and conservation on both cultural and biological diversity, enhancing local and indigenous ecological knowledge and community-based natural resource management, strengthening coordination with the local community, providing training in the conservation of the property, and facilitating poverty alleviation.

The clarification from the State Party regarding the approved infrastructure projects, as requested by the Committee, is appreciated and indicates that the approved activities to date focus only on repair and maintenance, and therefore appear to be small in scale and not to constitute a threat to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property. The State Party’s continued implementation of measures towards strengthening sustainable tourism, integrated water management and minimizing environmental pollution in the property are positive.

It is noted that no new road has been constructed within the property since 2015. It is critical that the State Party continue to uphold the Committee’s request to ensure that no road is permitted within the property in the future.

It is again regrettable that the State Party has not submitted the Overall Plan of Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area (2005-2020), despite the Committee’s previous requests. Acknowledging that the Plan has now completed its implementation period and is currently undergoing review in the context of wider reform of the national protected areas system, and given the State Party’s intention to submit the new Plan following its completion (scheduled for 2020 but delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic), it is critical that the review of the new draft plan be completed as soon as possible and submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN.

The finalization of the Sustainable Tourism and Development Strategy of the World Heritage Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area, carried out by WHITR-AP/Shanghai in alignment with the objectives of the UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme, is welcomed. Noting that tourism numbers decreased in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic, and acknowledging the Committee’s concerns over the impacts of growing visitor numbers on the property, it is critical to ensure that tourism numbers do not reach unsustainable levels within the property following the anticipated recovery of the tourism market. It is, therefore, welcomed that the Sustainable Tourism and Development Strategy includes provisions to improve resilience to risks in its development model by incorporating local community participation and regional economic development. However, noting that visitation to the property was increasing year-on-year before 2020, and recalling previous decisions of the Committee, the fact that it is unclear how tourism carrying capacity limits are calculated in order to ensure that visitation does not negatively impact the property remains a source of concern.

Finally, while taking note that the relocation of local residents was reportedly carried out by engaging local communities through public consultation and included financial compensation incentives and social benefits to encourage voluntary relocation, it is important that the Committee encourage the State Party to continue ensuring that any relocation programme is implemented in line with the 2015 Policy Document on the Integration of a Sustainable Development Perspective into the Processes of the World Heritage Convention and thus ensures effective consultation, fair compensation, access to social benefits and skills training, and the preservation of cultural rights.