Decision 40 COM 7B.33

The Grand Canal (China) (C 1443)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 38 COM 8B.23 adopted by the Committee at its 38th session (Doha, 2014),
3. Notes the efforts made by the State Party in the implementation of the recommendations of the Committee, and requests the State Party to:
   1. Continue its reflection and work for the protection of the surroundings of the Grand Canal to guarantee the sustainable maintenance of the attributes of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), and specifically:
      1. study whether an adjustment will be required to the buffer zones in the sectors of the property which are not affected by the request for a minor boundary modification under examination at the present session,
      2. confirm that the regulatory standards in force for constructions apply to all the buffer zones and are effectively taken into consideration by the municipal development plans,
      3. further develop the concept of a “visual corridor”, for example by defining priority cones of vision and protecting them, if necessary, from the negative impact of new buildings,
   2. Continue the identification work concerning the historical and archaeological signification of constitutive elements of the property,
   3. Inform the Committee of the effective functioning and results of the different components of the property, in particular:
      1. the monitoring system for the Grand Canal that has recently been established,
      2. the maintenance and improvement policy for water quality in the different sectors of the property,
      3. conservation and policy programmes for the traditional villages and urban zones of a historic character alongside the Grand Canal,
      4. tourism development and coordination programmes,
      5. training programmes and activities aimed at strengthening the capacities of staff concerned with the conservation, valorisation and promotion of the property;
4. 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.