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Historical Centre of the City of Arequipa

Peru
Factors affecting the property in 2016*
  • Deliberate destruction of heritage
  • Ground transport infrastructure
  • Housing
  • Management systems/ management plan
Factors* affecting the property identified in previous reports
  • Deliberate demolition of historic buildings
  • Ground transport infrastructure
  • Planned and ongoing development projects
  • Management systems (lack of a Risk Preparedness Plan)
  • Lack of management plan (issue resolved)
  • Uncontrolled urban development
International Assistance: requests for the property until 2016
Requests approved: 1 (from 2001-2001)
Total amount approved : 75,000 USD
Missions to the property until 2016**

February 2000: ICOMOS expert mission; July 2001: expert mission; August 2001: expert mission; April-May 2008: World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission; November 2014: World Heritage Centre / ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission

Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2016

On 13 February 2015 and 27 January 2016, the State Party submitted annual reports on its actions in 2014 and 2015 respectively. A summary of the 2016 report is available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1016/documents/. The State Party’s replies to each of the recommendations of the Committee are as follows:

  • No consensus has been reached yet regarding the possible extension of the World Heritage property area and the (re)definition of its buffer zone. However, the Decentralized Directorate of Culture (DDC-Arequipa) declared as Cultural Heritage the right bank, the polygon of Barrio del Vallecito up to the transversal intersection of Selva Alegre and the Traditional Town and Terrace Network of Carmen Alto (Directorial Resolutions 094-DDC-ARE-MC, August 2015 and 062-DDC-ARE-MC, June 2015);
  • The Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) on the Chilina Bridge Component has been completed while the assessment of the Via Troncal Interconectora Project is under preparation;
  • The joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission was carried out in November 2014 and concluded that, in principle, the Chilina Bridge has no visual impact on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property. The implementation of the recommendations of the mission is being coordinated by the DDC-Arequipa with the Provincial Municipality of Arequipa;
  • The approval of the Master Plan is subject to the approval of the Metropolitan Development Plan as well as the definition of the new boundaries of the historic centre and the buffer zone. The Risk Prevention Management Plan drafted by the Provincial Municipality of Arequipa, through the Management Office for the Historic Centre and the Monumental Zone, was approved by Municipal Ordinance 932-2015 dated 6 October 2015;
  • A private company has made a proposal for the construction of a Monorail-Type Mass Rapid Transit System in Arequipa. The Ministry of Culture has asked the company to submit a Preliminary Design for the Public Investment Project, so that it may be evaluated and submitted to the World Heritage Centre. As of this date, this document has not yet been submitted to the Ministry of Culture.

The 2015 and 2016 reports contain substantive annexes related to the issues above as well as progress reports on the preparation of the management plan and re-definition of the World Heritage property and its buffer zones, the Risk Prevention Management Plan, and the work plan for interventions in the Historic Centre during 2016.

Analysis and Conclusion by World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in 2016

The report on the 2014 Reactive Monitoring mission provides important recommendations for the implementation of the Committee’s decision regarding the boundaries of the property and its buffer zone, management, master plan, Risk Prevention Management Plan, metropolitan development plan, Chilina Bridge and the Via Troncal Interconectora and the Monorail project. It is noted with satisfaction that the State Party is taking these recommendations into account in follow-up actions.

As for the extension and/or boundary modifications, it should be reiterated that the 2014 mission and the World Heritage Committee recommended, as a first step, the extension of the buffer zone only as a minor boundary modification. This would avoid entering into a new nomination process and allow the authorities to direct its actions towards urgent conservation and management issues. Therefore, it is recommended that the Committee urge again the State Party to finalize the process of the definition of the extended buffer zone, as a matter of urgency, in order to provide a certain level of protection to the farming terraces and other areas around the property.

It is noted that the construction of the Chilina Bridge was continued in spite of explicit recommendations of the Committee not to continue the works before the completion of an HIA. The 2014 mission expressed the opinion that in principle, the bridge has no visual impact thanks to its lightweight design, horizontality and transparency. However, it also noted that the visual part is only one aspect to be taken into account when assessing potential impacts; there can also be physical, social, cultural and economic aspects, both direct and indirect, cumulative, temporary and permanent, reversible or irreversible. This is confirmed in the HIA submitted by the State Party in February 2015 that states that, as a consequence of the construction of the bridge, the landscape areas are in an accelerated process of transformation with the inclusion of constructions that are out of context. As a positive impact, it is noted that the traffic flow through the Historic Centre has clearly diminished since the construction of the bridge. Corrective and mitigation measures should be developed in response to the results of the HIA.

The cultural HIA on the Via Troncal Interconectora Project should be completed urgently and submitted to the World Heritage Centre for review by the Advisory Bodies. Given that the process is currently ongoing, it is recommended that the Committee reiterate its request to the State Party to include the assessment of the potential impacts of the project on the landscape of Lari Lari, Los Tucos, Cayma and Yanahuara.

It is noted with regret that the approval of the Master Plan for the property remains pending until approval of the Metropolitan Development Plan. In this sense the protection of the boundaries of the property and its buffer zone, in particular the agricultural areas, remains a matter of concern. It is imperative that the revision process of the Metropolitan Development Plan includes all stakeholders in order to coordinate all efforts to protect the property.

It is also recommended that the Committee congratulate the State Party for the approval of the Risk Prevention Management Plan and for the preliminary information about a Monorail Mass Rapid Transit System. The potential impact of such a transportation system should be very carefully analyzed and preliminary designs are indeed required for an in-depth analysis by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies. The State Party should be urged very strongly not to proceed with the further development of the project before the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies are in the position to provide appropriate advice on the project.

Decisions adopted by the Committee in 2016
40 COM 7B.8
Historic Centre of the City of Arequipa (Peru) (C 1016)

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/7B,
  2. Recalling Decision 38 COM 7B.46, adopted at its 38th session (Doha, 2014),
  3. Takes note of the World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission that took place in 2014 and requests the State Party to implement its recommendations;
  4. Reiterates its recommendation to the State Party to submit, as a matter of urgency, according to Paragraphs 163-165 of the Operational Guidelines, the final proposal for the buffer zone as a minor boundary modification, to enhance the protection of the visually sensitive areas around the property;
  5. Also takes note of the information provided on the Chilina Bridge and the Via Troncal Interconectora Project and notes with regret that these infrastructural works have been completed in spite of its recommendations over the past years not to initiate the works as long as a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) had not been completed, and also requests the State Party to complete it as a matter of urgency, and submit it for review by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;
  6. Also notes that the HIA for the Chilina Bridge concludes that as a consequence of the construction of the bridge, the surrounding landscape areas are in an accelerated process of transformation;
  7. Urges the State Party to develop a mitigation plan to control the undesirable urbanisation and constructions that are already taking place as a consequence of the works;
  8. Welcomes the completion of the Risk Prevention Management Plan;
  9. Reiterates its request to the State Party to complete the process of reviewing of the Metropolitan Development Plan in order to rationalize inconsistencies with the Master Plan of the property and to confirm whether or not this plan is to be regarded as the management plan for the property, requested by the World Heritage Committee to ensure the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property;
  10. Invites the State Party to submit as soon as possible more detailed information on the proposal to construct a Monorail Transportation System in the city of Arequipa, for review by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, and also urges the State Party not to proceed with the further development of the project pending consultations, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
  11. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2017, 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 42nd session in 2018.
Draft Decision: 40 COM 7B.8

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined Document WHC/16/40.COM/7B,
  2. Recalling Decision 38 COM 7B.46, adopted at its 38th session (Doha, 2014),
  3. Takes note of the World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring mission that took place in 2014 and requests the State Party to implement its recommendations;
  4. Reiterates its recommendation to the State Party to submit, as a matter of urgency, according to Paragraphs 163-165 of the Operational Guidelines, the final proposal for the buffer zone as a minor boundary modification, to enhance the protection of the visually sensitive areas around the property;
  5. Also takes note of the information provided on the Chilina Bridge and the Via Troncal Interconectora Project and notes with regret that these infrastructural works have been completed in spite of its recommendations over the past years not to initiate the works as long as a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) had not been completed, and also requests the State Party to complete it as a matter of urgency, and submit it for review by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies;
  6. Also notes that the HIA for the Chilina Bridge concludes that as a consequence of the construction of the bridge, the surrounding landscape areas are in an accelerated process of transformation;
  7. Urges the State Party to develop a mitigation plan to control the undesirable urbanisation and constructions that are already taking place as a consequence of the works;
  8. Welcomes the completion of the Risk Prevention Management Plan;
  9. Reiterates its request to the State Party to complete the process of reviewing of the Metropolitan Development Plan in order to rationalize inconsistencies with the Master Plan of the property and to confirm whether or not this plan is to be regarded as the management plan for the property, requested by the World Heritage Committee to ensure the protection of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property;
  10. Invites the State Party to submit as soon as possible more detailed information on the proposal to construct a Monorail Transportation System in the city of Arequipa, for review by the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies, and also urges the State Party not to proceed with the further development of the project pending consultations, in accordance with Paragraph 172 of the Operational Guidelines;
  11. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2017, 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 42nd session in 2018.
Report year: 2016
Peru
Date of Inscription: 2000
Category: Cultural
Criteria: (i)(iv)
Documents examined by the Committee
SOC Report by the State Party
Report (2016) .pdf
arrow_circle_right 40COM (2016)
Exports

* : The threats indicated are listed in alphabetical order; their order does not constitute a classification according to the importance of their impact on the property.
Furthermore, they are presented irrespective of the type of threat faced by the property, i.e. with specific and proven imminent danger (“ascertained danger”) or with threats which could have deleterious effects on the property’s Outstanding Universal Value (“potential danger”).

** : All mission reports are not always available electronically.


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