The Bureau recalled that at its twenty-first ordinary session it requested the Brazilian authorities to close the 18km road traversing the Park that had been illegally re-opened by local people. The Committee at its last session (Naples, 1997), was informed by IUCN that the road had been temporarily closed, and that several actions had been undertaken by the Brazilian authorities to strengthen management of the Park. Nevertheless, the Committee called for the permanent closure of the road and requested the Brazilian authorities to provide information concerning the rehabilitation of the damaged areas.
The Centre informed the Bureau that: (1) on 11 January 1998, local people illegally re-gained access to the road in the Park; (2) the Brazilian National Congress had established a Task Force under its Permanent Environmental Commission to investigate the issue; (3) the Task Force visited the area on 5 March 1998 and urged that a solution to the conflict be found; (4) the National Institute for the Environment envisaged the preparation of a new management plan as soon as invaders left the area; and (5) members of the Brazilian judicial community have reiterated their call for the closure of the road. The Director of the UNESCO Office in Brazil received a letter dated 27 May 1998 from the Director of Ecosystems of the Ministry of the Environment, confirming that the road has been illegally reopened and that parts of the Park are damaged. The Ministry hopes to solve the problems through the Task Force, the revision of the Management Plan and the preparation of a comprehensive revitalisation programme.
The Bureau requested the Centre to prepare a mission to the site jointly with IUCN to review the situation and to assist the State Party to mitigate the threats to the Park. The Bureau furthermore requested the Centre to write to the Brazilian authorities to express its serious concerns with regard to the state of conservation of the site. The Bureau asked the State Party to provide by 15 September 1998: (1) a copy of the revitalisation programme and a time frame for the rehabilitation of damaged areas, and (2) a detailed report on the state of conservation of the site and actions taken with regard to the permanent closure of the road.