Decision 46 COM 7B.7

Paris, Banks of the Seine (France) (C 600)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 45 COM 7B.53 adopted at its extended 45th session (Riyadh, 2023),
3. Notes with satisfaction the progress made on the reconstruction and restoration of Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral with a view to its reopening in December 2024, including the new fire defence and fire safety project for the cathedral;
4. Welcomes the initiative to create a museum dedicated to the cathedral, to be housed in the Hôtel-Dieu, to showcase the collections relating to this important place of worship, art and history, and recommends that the State Party send documentation on the progress of the project to the World Heritage Centre, for review by the Advisory Bodies;
5. Takes note of the project to create contemporary stained glass windows to mark the period of the fire and restoration, to be installed in six chapels on the south aisle of the cathedral in place of the existing 19th century stained glass windows, and considers that such a project should be the subject of a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) based on the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context, taking into account the logic adopted by the reconstruction/restoration intervention, and a consensus among the various stakeholders;
6. Recalls its Decision 38 COM 7 in which it encouraged the identification of potential impacts of future Olympic Games on World Heritage properties at an early stage of the Games award process, in order to ensure that such impacts can be avoided or adequately mitigated by the organizing country, and notes that information on installations and facilities planned for the Olympic Games within the property has recently been transmitted to the World Heritage Centre and is currently being reviewed by the Advisory Bodies;
7. Also notes that the project to develop the management plan for the property has begun, encourages the State Party to build on the 2011 UNESCO Recommendation on the Historic Urban Landscape in this process, requests the State Party to submit the integrated management plan for the property to the World Heritage Centre, for review by the Advisory Bodies, prior to its adoption, and reiterates its recommendation to include the new risk prevention and management plan;
8. Takes note of the setting up of a multidisciplinary committee to guide the project for the redevelopment of the Place de la Concorde and requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre detailed information on the project, as well as the related HIA, for review by the Advisory Bodies before making any decisions that would be difficult to reverse;
9. Encourages the State Party to pursue a more regular dialogue with the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in the context of the restoration work of the cathedral and the development of its surroundings;
10. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2025, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, including a full overview of the measures taken to dismantle the installations and facilities put in place on the occasion of the Olympic Games, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 47th session.