Decision 46 COM 7B.46

Ancient Maya City and Protected Tropical Forests of Calakmul, Campeche (Mexico) (C/N 1061bis)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decisions 44 COM 7B.78 and 45 COM 7B.99 adopted at its extended 44th (Fuzhou/online, 2021) and extended 45th (Riyadh, 2023) sessions respectively,
3. Commends the State Party for the actions undertaken by the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) for the implementation of the Management Plan of the property, as well as for the research and documentation collected through LiDAR imagery, that will help guide priority conservation actions;
4. Notes with appreciation the extensive research and documentation programme of INAH in the framework of the Tren Maya project and strongly urges the State Party to address previous Decisions and the recommendations in the technical reviews of the Advisory Bodies;
5. Appreciates the submission of the Environmental Impact ‘Statement’ (EIA) for the Tren Maya project, however notes with concern that it does not allow for a comprehensive assessment of impacts on the OUV of the property and requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre an updated EIA that assesses impacts on all the values and attributes of the property, including beyond the physical footprint of the project and assessing connectivity across the whole property and its buffer zone;
6. Reiterates its request to the State Party to undertake a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to assess the strategic alignment and cumulative impacts of the Tren Maya project on the six World Heritage properties located along the proposed route of the railway, and include an assessment of alternative options, in line with the principles of the Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context;
7. Considers it essential that any changes to the boundaries of the Biosphere Reserve, comprising the buffer zone of the property, are undertaken through a transparent consultative process with full and effective participation of local and indigenous communities and rightsholders which ensures free, prior and informed consent and is in line with international norms, and also requests the State Party to submit information on the consultations undertaken during the process of amending the boundaries of the Biosphere Reserve to the World Heritage Centre;
8. Urges again the State Party to consider previous recommendations from the Committee to include additional and relevant cultural sites within the boundaries of the property and its buffer zone;
9. Further requests the State Party to invite a joint UNESCO/ICOMOS/IUCN Reactive Monitoring mission to the property to assess the current status of the Tren Maya project and its accompanying developments in light of its rapid development and its potential to negatively impact on the OUV of the property;
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, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 47th session.