Case Law

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decisions 22 COM VII.17 and 38 COM 7B.25, adopted at its 22nd (Kyoto, 1998) and 38th (Doha 2014) sessions respectively,
3. Expresses its concern regarding inappropriate conservation works of all parts of the City Walls and requests the State Party to implement all relevant measures, including repairs of damage and development of guidelines on best conservation practices, to prevent any threat to the structural stability of the City Walls, and to ensure strict and regular monitoring;
4. Endorses the recommendations of the 2015 joint UNESCO/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission to the property and also requests the State Party to give the highest priority to the implementation of its recommendations, notably to:
   1. Develop and submit to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies the Management Plan of the property, including a tourism strategy, legal regulations for cruise ship tourism, identification of the sustainable carrying capacity of the city, a risk-preparedness action plan and an interpretation strategy,
   2. Not to proceed with the Bosanka 2 project, nor to construct the Lazeretto; Quay/Landing Stage with connection to the Old Port,
   3. Submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2017, a minor boundary modification proposal with a view to expanding the buffer zone as recommended by the mission,
   4. Finalize and submit the retrospective Statement of Outstanding Universal Value (SOUV) for the property to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2017, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 41st session in 2017;
5. Taking note of the current status of the Sports and Recreation Centre with a Golf Course and the Bosanka North and Bosanka South Tourist Resorts project planned for the plateau of Mount Srđ and Bosanka in the vicinity of the property, considers that the Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) demonstrates that, subject to design refinement, the proposed Sports and Recreation Centre with a Golf Course and the Bosanka North and Bosanka South Tourist Resorts would have an acceptable effect on the OUV of the property, and further requests the State Party to:
   1. Facilitate revisions to the plans and drawings for the project to ensure that no construction is to take place within a minimum distance of 50m from the edges of the plateau,
   2. Continue the dialogue with the Advisory Bodies as the Resorts project progresses,
   3. Submit amended plans for the project to the World Heritage Centre in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, for review by the Advisory Bodies before construction works begin,
   4. Submit relevant documentation, including HIAs, to the World Heritage Centre, in line with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, before any final decisions are made or any works start, for major developments projects within the property, its buffer zone and setting;
6. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2017, 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 42nd session in 2018.

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 38 COM 7B.27, adopted at its 38th session (Doha, 2014),
3. Expresses its extreme concern that the combination of previous developments, ongoing transformations and proposed projects within the property which are threatening serious deterioration of the eco and cultural systems of the Lagoon and irreversible changes to the overall relationship between the City and its Lagoon, as well as the loss of architectural and town-planning coherence of the historic city, all of which would lead to substantive and irreversible loss of authenticity and integrity;
4. Considers that the property requires an immediate improvement to the planning tools available through the creation of:
   1. an integrated strategy for all on-going and planned developments within the property,
   2. a three-dimensional morphological model and
   3. a sustainable tourism strategy,
      all of which should be reflected in an updated Management Plan for the property; this revised planning approach should also be founded on a shared vision of authorities and stakeholders which affords priority to sustaining the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property and its landscape and seascape setting;
5. Reiterates its request to the State Party to enforce speed limits and regulate the number and type of boats in the Lagoon and in the canals;
6. Also reiterates its request to the State Party to adopt, as a matter of urgency, a legal document introducing prohibition of the largest ships and tankers to enter the Lagoon and requests the State Party to put in place all necessary strategic, planning and management frameworks to this end;
7. Also requests the State Party to halt all new projects within the property, prior to the mid-term assessment of the Management Plan, and the submission of details of proposed developments, together with Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), to the World Heritage Centre, in conformity with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines, for review by the Advisory Bodies;
8. Endorses the recommendations of the 2015 mission and further requests the State Party to fully implement these recommendations;
9. Requests furthermore the State Party to revise the proposed buffer zone for the property in line with the ICOMOS technical review and submit it to the World Heritage Centre as a minor boundary modification, by 1 December 2016, for examination by the Committee at its 41st session in 2017;
10. Finally requests that the State Party implement all urgent measures highlighted in the mission report and submit to the World Heritage Committee a detailed report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, by 1 February 2017 for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 41st session in 2017, with a view, if no substantial progress is accomplished by the State Party until then, to consider inscribing the property on the List of the World Heritage in Danger.

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 13 COM IX.22, adopted at its 13th session (UNESCO, 1989),
3. Takes note of the State Party’s efforts to develop a range of mechanisms to safeguard Venice and its lagoon landscape and of the approved Management Plan resulting from extensive consultations among all stakholders, and encourages the State Party to undertake its revision based on the results from the technical evaluation by ICOMOS;
4. Expresses its concern about the extent and scale of proposals for large infrastructure, navigation and construction projects in the Lagoon that can potentially jeopardize the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property by generating irreversible transformations on the landscape and seascape of the property;
5. Requests the State Party to undertake Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) for these projects to assess both individual and overall cumulative impacts of the potential modifications of the Lagoon and its immediate land and seascape, in order to prevent any irreversible transformations and potential threat to the property’s OUV and to enhance the protection of the property in relation to sustaining its OUV;
6. Also expresses its concern about the negative environmental impacts triggered by medium motor boats to high tonnage ships that have progressively caused erosion of the lagoon beds, mud banks and salt marshes, and which could represent potential threat to the property’s OUV and also requests the State Party to enforce speed limits and regulate the number and type of boats;
7. Urges the State Party to prohibit the largest ships and tankers to enter the Lagoon and further requests the State Party to adopt, as a matter of urgency, a legal document introducing such a process;
8. Recognises the exceptionally high tourism pressure on the city of Venice, and the extensive tourism related activities, urges the State Party to prioritise the development of a sustainable tourism strategy, and also encourages the State Party to develop jointly with the major tourism and cruise companies alternative solutions to allow cruise tourists to enjoy and understand the value of Venice and also its fragility;
9. Further encourages financial institutions and agencies to ensure that Heritage and/or Environmental Impact Assessments are carried out to determine that there are no negative impacts on the OUV, before planning investment in large-scale developments within the property and its setting;
10. Encourages furthermore the State Party to continue with the assessment of the hydrology and geo-mechanics functioning of the Venice Lagoon and its whole drainage basin; and invites the State Party to establish a strong coordination among all stakeholders concerned to ensure the hydro-geological balances of the Venice Lagoon and the whole drainage basin, as well as the protection of all attributes that convey the OUV of the property;
11. Also takes note of the proposal for the establishment of the buffer zone and also invites the State Party to undertake its revision in line with the ICOMOS technical review and submit to the World Heritage Centre the minor boundary modification by 1 February 2015;
12. Requests furthermore the State Party to invite a joint UNESCO/ICOMOS reactive monitoring mission to the property in 2015 to assess current conditions at the property, including the evaluation of potential impacts derived from development proposals and identify options for development proposals in accordance to the OUV of the property, as well as to review if the property is faced with threats which could have deleterious effects on its inherent characteristics and meets the criteria for its inscription on the List of World Heritage in Danger in line with Paragraph 179 of the Operational Guidelines , and recommends to the State Party to also invite a representative of the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention to take part in this reactive monitoring mission;
13. Requests moreover the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2015, a progress report on the state of conservation of the property, and by 1 December 2015 a state of conservation report on the implementation of the above, both reports including a 1-page executive summary, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 40th session in 2016.

The World Heritage Committee,

1.Having examined Document WHC-07/31.COM/7B.Add,

2.Recalling Decision 30 COM 7B.23, adopted as its 30th session (Vilnius, 2006),

3.Welcomes the positive activities undertaken by the State Party, in particular, the development of clear boundaries for the proposed Lipari Reserve and closer collaboration between the two relevant regional authorities;

4.Notes with concern that the PUMEX rehabilitation plan for the mining area is likely to threaten the integrity of the property, and that the World Heritage status is not taken into account in this document;

5.Notes with serious concern the conservation and management issues affecting the outstanding universal value and integrity of the property as assessed by the March 2007 World Heritage Centre/IUCN mission, in particular the lack of a management plan and management structure, continued mining activity at the PUMEX site within the World Heritage property, the lack of a deadline for completion of stockpiled material removal, as well as the lack of regulatory and other mechanisms to control port developments and coastal infrastructure;

6.Urges the State Party to implement the following key recommendations of the March 2007 mission immediately:

    a)Stop all mining extractive activity in areas within and adjacent to the World Heritage property, and prohibit new mines from being opened;

     b)Set a deadline for removal of stockpiled pumice material;

     c)Prepare a Management Plan making use of the most updated scientific data available and including the identification of funding resources to implement it, as well as staffing, monitoring, and awareness-raising; 

     d)Designate an appropriate management entity and ensure appropriate funding;

     e)Undertake a thorough and comprehensive environmental impact assessment of the proposed enlargement of the port of Lipari, including an analysis of the impact on the World Heritage property by cruise ships;

     f)Institute a science-based project of vegetation restoration using native plants and a sound, creative plan for conversion of the mining infrastructure to serve educational and ecotourism needs, in conjunction with a programme of reemployment and/or retraining of the affected mining workers;

     g)Ratify the redrawn boundaries for the proposed Lipari Reserve and submit a proposal for a corresponding boundary modification of the World Heritage property in line with the Operational Guidelines;

     h)Carefully consider the creation of a Regional Park for all the Aeolian Islands; and

     i)Consider, in light of the availability of updated scientific data on the islands' natural values, to submit a re-nomination of the World Heritage property to include additional natural criteria and to protect important coastal and marine habitats;

7) Requests the State Party to submit by 1 February 2008 a progress report including all issues indicated above for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 32nd session in 2008, at which the Committee will consider the possible inscription of the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger if the State Party does not take effective measures to address the key recommendations of the 2007 monitoring mission and to prevent the loss of the outstanding universal value and integrity of this property.