- Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/7B,
- Recalling Decision 38 COM 7B.80, adopted at its 38th session (Doha, 2014),
- Notes the updated information regarding the planned golf resort development project that may affect the property, requests the State Party to ensure that the World Heritage Centre is informed if this development begins to be implemented, and welcomes the State Party’s intentions to notify the Committee if any new proposal is submitted;
- Urges the State Party to ensure that any new proposal submitted by the new land owner is assessed in terms of their potential impact on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property in accordance with IUCN’s World Heritage Advice Note on Environment Assessment;
- Also notes that Rathlin Energy Limited has terminated the petroleum exploration licence, which overlapped with the boundaries of the property, and acknowledges that the State Party will apply Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines when considering future licences;
- Reiterates its position that oil and gas exploration or exploitation is incompatible with World Heritage status, which is supported by the commitments made by industry leaders such as Shell and Total to not undertake such activities within World Heritage properties, and also requests the State Party to ensure that such activities will not be permitted to take place within World Heritage properties, and that any such activities taking place outside a World Heritage property do not result in negative impacts on its OUV;
- Further 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.
Decision 40 COM 7B.102
Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland) (N 369)
The World Heritage Committee,
Decision Code
40 COM 7B.102
Themes
Properties 1
Year
2016
State of conservation reports
2016 Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast
Documents
WHC/16/40.COM/19
Report of the Decisions adopted during the 40th session of the World Heritage Committee (Istanbul/UNESCO, 2016)