Pyrénées - Mont Perdu

• Impacts of the Gavarnie Festival (France)
• Insufficient support for agropastoralism
• Inefficient transboundary cooperation

The State Parties submitted a joint report on the state of conservation of the property on 31 January 2014. A summary of this report is available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/773/documents/. Progress achieved regarding some of the conservation problems raised by the Committee at its earlier sessions are presented in the report, as follows:

• A study was carried out to evaluate the feasibility of a relocation of the Gavarnie Festival outside of the property boundaries and concluded that there were no alternative sites available. It indicated that efforts had been undertaken to minimize the impacts on the property and proposed to confirm the organization of the Gavarnie Festival at the La Courade site. The State Party of France pledged to respect the regulations of the site listed in accordance with the law of 2 May 1930;
• The closure of the Troumouse Road is planned within the framework of the development project proposed by the Gavarnie-Gedre communities, which was adopted in 2013 for a ten-year period. Its progressive implementation foresees limitation mechanisms to control tourist visitation as of 2014, as well as an architectural and landscaping requalification of the Héas Valley;
• The States Parties indicate that financial assistance has been requested at the European and national levels to support widespread livestock breeding and enhance the pastoral heritage. The World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies emphasize that these funds would concern all the  mountain ranges and that the funds would be allocated to the rehabilitation of trails situated beyond the boundaries of the property;
• To ensure the concerted management of the property, a joint transboundary steering committee meets yearly since 2012 and brings together representatives of the two States Parties and National Parks. A common management plan is being drafted in the framework of the Pyrénées -Mont Perdu World Heritage Project (PMPPM) and should be completed in December 2014.

The joint report on the state of conservation of the property underlines the progress achieved in the organization of transboundary governance and the commitment to the development of a common management plan. However it is necessary to strengthen the representative nature of the joint steering committee by ensuring the participation of civil society, the agricultural sector and scientific institutions.

Note should also be taken of progress made in the transboundary consultation process and the development of a joint vision on the management of the property through, in particular, the organization of workshops on pastoralism and the conservation of characteristics of the cultural landscape. However, support to agropastoral activities in the property should be reinforced and sustainable to ensure the long-term maintenance of the pastoral units that are fundamental for the sustainable management of the landscape.

Progress has also been accomplished in the consideration of recommendations relating to the closure of the Troumouse Road and to the relocation of the Gavarnie Festival. However, the elements provided to explain the lack of any impact of the festival on the property remain unclear and do not provide a satisfactory response to the request for relocation. It is recalled that the major problem of the festival concerns its incompatibility with the aesthetic values of the cultural landscape for which the property was inscribed. It is recommended that the Committee request the State Party of France to continue its efforts to reduce impacts and seek alternative sites beyond the boundaries of the property, in conformity with the commitments undertaken at the time of its inscription.