Decision 39 COM 7B.78

Upper Middle Rhine Valley (Germany) (C 1066)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-15/39.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 37 COM 7B.75, adopted at its 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013),
3. Regrets that it has not proved possible to include within the Master Plan, as requested, an appraisal of appropriate options for a Rhine crossing; urges the State Party to explore other ways to carry out such an appraisal so that there can be a clear policy way forward beyond the end of 2016; and requests the State Party to submit such an appraisal to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies;
4. Welcomes the sight line study that has been undertaken in relation to the location of wind turbines, with its clear methodology and detailed implementation as well as the resolution passed by the Federal State of Rhineland Palatinate to keep the property and the buffer free of turbines and to ensure proposals for turbines beyond the buffer zone are evaluated for their impact on Outstanding Universal Value (OUV);
5. Also urges the State Party and the authorities concerned to accept the outcomes of the sight line study and implement appropriate policies through its energy plan and other measures;
6. Encourages the State Party to collaborate with ICOMOS to develop clear and consistent approaches for wind turbine policies, that might have wider application;
7. Notes the commitments by the States of Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse to drive forward measures to reduce noise levels from trains in the property, but also notes the limit of their possible actions and further urges the State Party and the authorities concerned to use their infrastructure programmes in order to prioritise the reduction of train noise and support technical improvements to train tracks and tunnels;
8. Stresses the need for the updated Management Plan to set out clear governance processes for the property as well as clear policies and strategies in order to support coherent and consistent development across the whole property;
9. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2016, an updated report, including a 1-page executive summary, on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 41st session in 2017.