The Bureau thanked IUCN, and the Observer of Ecuador for their reports. It noted that there was a major effort in Ecuador to take steps to conserve the World Heritage values of the islands.
The Bureau recalled that, at its twentieth session in Merida, the World Heritage Committee decided "to include the Galapagos National Park in the List of World Heritage in Danger, effective 15 November 1997, unless a substantive written reply by Ecuador is received by 1st of May 1997, and the Bureau, at its twenty first session determine that effective actions have been taken".
Having studied both the report of the State Party and the report of IUCN, the Bureau came to the conviction that such effective actions have been taken that the efforts of the Ecuadorean authorities should be honoured. The Bureau therefore decided that it would not be appropriate to include the Galapagos National Park in the List of World Heritage in Danger at this time.
In order to enable the World Heritage Committee, at its twenty first session, to have a full picture of the up-to-date situation of the World Heritage Site, the Bureau asked the State Party to deliver a progress report by, 15 November 1997, on the nine issues outlined in the IUCN report of 3rd June 1997, as follows:
- Decree
- Law
- Control of Residency
- Quarantine
- Environmental management of populated areas
- Introduced species
- Marine reserve
- Tourism
- Financing
The Bureau recommended the World Heritage Committee to ask the State Party for an annual progress report on the above mentioned issues from the end of 1998 until the end of 2002.
The Bureau further recommended that if the decrees of the Government of Ecuador are not reflected in law by the time of the twenty-first session of the World Heritage Committee, scheduled in December 1997, in Naples, Italy, the Committee could once again consider adding the Galapagos to the List of World Heritage in Danger.