Decision 41 COM 7B.31

Chitwan National Park (Nepal) (N 284)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/17/41.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 39 COM 7B.15, adopted at its 39th session (Bonn, 2015),
3. Commends the State Party for achieving at least four years (2011-2015) of zero rhino poaching at the property and, noting that poaching continues to be a threat, urges the State Party to uphold its current anti-poaching efforts, in collaboration with the Nepali Army, in order to ensure their continued success;
4. Welcomes the State Party’s decision to undertake an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the alternative alignment of the East-West Electric Railway that avoids the property, and the initiation of an EIA for the Trivenidham-Balmikiashram suspension bridge, and requests the State Party to submit copies of these EIAs to the World Heritage Centre, for review by IUCN, as soon as they are available;
5. Also requests the State Party to make an unequivocal commitment not to allow the development of the East-West Electric Railway and the Terai Hulaki Highway to proceed along their proposed alignments through the property, and not to approve any other new roads or reopening/upgrading of old roads through the property, including the proposed Dumkibas-Tribeni road, the Madi-Balmikiashram road, the State 3 and State 4 proposed China-India Trade Links, and the Tori-Malekhu road;
6. Considers that if any of the aforementioned road and railway developments were to proceed according to their proposed alignments through the property, they would represent a clear potential danger to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, in accordance with Paragraph 180 of the Operational Guidelines, and a clear basis for inscription of the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger;
7. Notes with concern that the Chitwan District Road Office has called a tender for tarmacking the Bharatpur-Thori road through the property, and further requests the State Party to ensure that any upgrading of the parts of the Bharatpur-Thori road that are located inside the property, including black-topping and widening, shall not be permitted;
8. Requests furthermore the State Party to undertake a thorough EIA of the proposed Thori-Birgunj road, including an assessment of potential impacts on the OUV of the property, considering that this road has the potential to increase the demand for transportation of commercial goods to destinations beyond Thori, which would generate an increase in heavy traffic through the property;
9. Regrets that the State Party did not provide further information on encroachment at Gajendra Dham and in important wildlife habitats of the property, and on progress achieved in the demarcation of the property’s boundaries;
10. Taking note of the recommendations of the 2016 IUCN Reactive Monitoring mission, requests moreover the State Party to fully implement all these recommendations in the best delay;
11. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2018, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property, including detailed information on the implementation of each of the recommendations made by the 2016 mission, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 43rd session in 2019.