Cultural Landscape of Sintra

a) Lack of comprehensive management plan;

b) Lack of conservation of parks and palaces;

c) Rapid encroachment by urban and infrastructure development;

d) Tourism pressure;

e) Lack of institutional coordination.

Following the recommendations of the reactive monitoring mission of March 2006, and the Committee’s Decision requesting to set up a clear management structure, as well as to elaborate a comprehensive management plan with relevant benchmark documents, the State Party reported on 1 February 2007 on the following steps taken:

a) On 22 January 2007, the Portuguese Ministries for the Environment and for Culture jointly decided to attribute the responsibility of the overall co-ordination of the World Heritage site management to the independent publicly funded society Parques de Sintra-Monte da Lua (PSML), which gathers three Ministries as well as the Municipality of Sintra in its governing Board;

b) This newly designated site management entity (PSML) has secured the collaboration of all public institutions, including the Municipality of Cascais, which are responsible for different existing planning documents at the property, and will develop permanent co-operation with private property owners and private funding institutions in the near future;

c) The State Party has presented a concise Action Plan for the period 2007-2009, prepared by PSML, delineating clear objectives, deadlines, performance indicators and responsibilities for 1) activities regarding the legal and institutional framework, 2) the planning activities towards a comprehensive management plan for the World Heritage site, as well as 3) continued conservation and restoration works.

In the period of 2007-2009, the following activities are to be undertaken and piloted by PSML: the review of the boundaries of the World Heritage property, a coherence analysis of land-use planning instruments, an analysis of the forest management plan, the co-ordination of the existing land-use plans with the protection requirements of the World Heritage property, a site interpretation plan, an urban development strategy for the World Heritage cultural landscape and its buffer and transition zones, terms of reference and preparation of the World Heritage Site Management Plan for 2010-2014. Stakeholder involvement and public consultations have been identified, and form a vital part in assessing the performance of some activities.

While the short Action Plan outlines an ambitious programme touching upon all points and relevant documents requiring coordination, a continuous political and financial commitment as well as a small team of responsible representatives are required to implement the Action Plan. The State Party may wish to consider seeking external expert advice to accompany the process, and to exchange management best practice with other World Heritage cultural landscapes.