Decision 45 COM 7B.195

Tarnowskie Góry Lead-Silver-Zinc Mine and its Underground Water Management System (Poland) (C 1539)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/23/45.COM/7B.Add.2,
2. Recalling Decision 44 COM 7B.53 adopted at its extended 44th session (Fuzhou/online, 2021),
3. Notes the continued progress made by the State Party in implementing its past recommendations;
4. Welcomes the completion of the inventories for the areas under the control of the Tarnowskie Góry Land Lovers’ Association (TGLLA), the Coal Mining Museum in Zabrze and the Veolia Water Supply and Sewerage Company in Tarnowskie Góry, the scientific research undertaken by the TGLLA and its partners, as well as the development of a GIS platform for the property;
5. Also notes the progress made in providing protection to the aboveground attributes underpinning the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property, and requests the State Party to provide an inventory of all aboveground attributes that have been protected, including an assessment of their state of conservation as an annex to its next state of conservation report;
6. Further notes that past monitoring has indicated that the extraction of water from the Adolph Shaft does not negatively influence the water system and water quality of the property, and also requests the State Party to commit to a programme of close monitoring and reporting should pumping commence at the Adolph Shaft in future;
7. Reiterates its request to the State Party to expeditiously finalise and submit to the World Heritage Centre all necessary documentation for the addition to the property of the historic water tower immediately adjacent to Kaehler Shaft, and to conclude the feasibility analysis which is considering the extension of area A5 to join area A4;
8. Considers that the establishment of a research and inventory programme, with goals and timelines, and the institutional support for such a programme are essential to support the protection of the OUV of the property and its management, and further requests that the State Party to:
   1. Establish the multidisciplinary scientific committee as a matter of urgency,
   2. Develop and implement a research and inventory programme to complete the inventory of the entire property,
   3. Ensure the sustainability of the research and inventory programme through institutional support,
   4. Further develop the GIS multi-layer map system to include the information from existing inventories,
   5. Provide the research and inventory programme, including timeframes for its implementation, information on its institutional support and progress on its implementation with its next state of conservation report;
9. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2024, 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 47th session.