Decision 43 COM 7B.17

Natural System of Wrangel Island Reserve (Russian Federation) (N 1023rev)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/19/43.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 42 COM 7B.77, adopted at its 42nd session (Manama, 2018),
3. Welcomes the reported monitoring activities and encourages the State Party to continue monitoring the conservation status of the polar bear subpopulation and to systematically assess and monitor the impacts of climate change on the property’s ecosystems;
4. Also welcomes the fact that tourism remains limited and the confirmation that no further upgrades of tourism facilities are planned;
5. Notes the progressive removal of garbage from Wrangel Island, but reiterates its request to the State Party to provide a timetabled programme to strengthen these efforts in order to complete the removal of garbage and clean-up of associated contaminants by 2023;
6. Recalls that should any potential hydrocarbon drilling activities be considered in the Yuzhno-Chukotski, Severo-Vrangelski-1 and -2 blocks, a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in line with IUCN’s Advice Note on Environmental Assessment and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) 2012 performance standards, needs to be developed and submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN, before any activities are permitted to proceed;
7. Regretting the lack of information provided by the State Party concerning the implementation of the 2017 Reactive Monitoring mission recommendations and several requests by the World Heritage Committee in previous decisions, requests the State Party to invite a joint World Heritage Centre/IUCN Reactive Monitoring mission for summer 2021, in order to obtain missing information and to review the implementation of the 2017 mission recommendations;
8. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2019, a detailed progress report on the implementation of the recommendations of the 2017 Reactive Monitoring mission, and by 1 December 2021, 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 46th session in 2022.