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Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaíso

Chile
Factors affecting the property in 2017*
  • Commercial development
  • Housing
  • Legal framework
  • Management systems/ management plan
  • Marine transport infrastructure
  • Other Threats:

    Fire

Factors* affecting the property identified in previous reports
  • Interventions planned at the port, such as the Barón Port and the Prat Dock, as well as for touristic facilities and real estate projects
  • Fragmentation of competencies and mandates by sectors and by different levels of government, as well as by the different types of specific protection and use of different areas, which does not allow for the management of the property with respect to its Outstanding Universal Value and within a broader perspective
  • Emergency situation due to the massive fire of April 2014
International Assistance: requests for the property until 2017
Requests approved: 1 (from 2010-2010)
Total amount approved : 140,688 USD
Missions to the property until 2017**

November 2013: ICOMOS Advisory mission

Conservation issues presented to the World Heritage Committee in 2017

In July and November 2016, the State Party submitted reports on the Archaeological Management Plan, modifications to the Puerto Baron Project and Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) of the Terminal 2 and Puerto Baron projects. On 13 December 2016, it submitted a comprehensive state of conservation report that is available at https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/959/documents. The earlier submissions are included as Annex 4 of this report. The State Party informs on the following matters:

  • It is not possible at this point in time to provide a timetable for the implementation of the Urban Development Policy (UDP) in Valparaiso. This policy will be overseen by the Urban Development Council and will be gradually and incrementally implemented. A working group on Identity and Heritage has been established and a Proposal for a New Integrated Urban Planning for Chile is under preparation. Once the necessary legal and regulatory instruments are adopted, it is expected that results will be seen within a three to four year period;
  • An extensive analysis by the State Party of the current planning mechanisms recognizes that there are weaknesses and dispersion - institutional, procedural, instrumental and conceptual - in the treatment of urban matters and to that effect, urban heritage. The UDP and the management structures that will evolve will be characterized by the coordination of initiatives and the growing convergence of interest parties. In the meantime, coordination efforts are undertaken by all entities and levels of government to resolve the present deteriorated situation in the city as a whole;
  • A Port Development Master Plan was in existence at the time of the inscription of the property on the World Heritage List and only a part of the Terminal 2 project falls within the buffer zone, while the Puerto Baron Project lies 2.5 km away. However, at the request of the World Heritage Committee and under the guidance of the Conservation Committee of the Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaiso, the project for Puerto Baron was revised considerably (reducing new volumes and giving a more prominent presence to the Simon Bolivar Warehouse). Furthermore, an Archaeological Heritage Management Plan was approved by the National Monuments Council in April 2016 and a HIA was conducted by an independent expert. The State Party considers that it has favourably responded to the Committee´s observations and that this case can now be closed.
Analysis and Conclusion by World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies in 2017

The State Party should be commended for its constructive response to the observations and recommendations of the Committee and for the high-level of documentation and restoration projects of elevators and other structures in the property.

It is noted that the implementation of the new UDP will be a process of a number of years and that it is currently impossible to provide a timeline for its application in the case of Valparaiso. The State Party recognizes that present mechanisms are deficient and it is important to provide for transitionary measures to ensure the proper management of the World Heritage area and its buffer zone in a complex urban environment under strong development pressure.

The implementation of the Port Development Master Plan, the opening of new spaces along the coast line, the opening of the passenger cruise terminal and Puerto Baron Project, and the considerable number of interventions that are planned in public spaces, within or outside the property and its buffer zone, together with the fragility and conservation needs of the property, call for strong inter-institutional and comprehensive planning tools. The Historic Urban Landscape approach is again strongly recommended.

The redesign of the Puerto Baron Project responds to the observations of the 2013 ICOMOS Advisory mission and subsequent World Heritage Committee decisions. It is recommended that the Committee thank the State Party and all parties involved for their open and constructive attitude and for the results achieved.

Regarding Terminal 2, it is important to recall that the HIA submitted highlights the importance of mitigation and compensation measures to reduce the potential impact of the project on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property. In this case, it stated that only five of the 14 measures proposed by the concessionaire in May 2016 could be considered as mitigation and compensation. Furthermore, it is recommended that the Committee request the State Party to submit a progress report on the conclusion of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) - also foreseen in the Port Development Master Plan - and eventual mitigation measures that will subsequently be proposed. 

Decisions adopted by the Committee in 2017
41 COM 7B.60
Historic Quarter of the Seaport City of Valparaíso (Chile) (C 959rev)

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined Document WHC/17/41.COM/7B,
  2. Recalling Decision 39 COM 7B.90, adopted at its 39th session (Bonn, 2015),
  3. Expresses its appreciation for the substantive response that the State Party provided to its recommendations and for the high level of the documentation and intervention projects of elevators and other structures in the World Heritage property;
  4. Notes that the implementation of the Urban Development Policy and its application in Valparaiso will take a number of years and urges the State Party to implement transitionary measures to remedy weaknesses in the present mechanisms for the management and conservation of the property and in its relation to the urban development context of Valparaiso;
  5. Also expresses its appreciation to the State Party for the revisions to the Puerto Baron Project and the undertaking of Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) and the adoption of an Archaeological Heritage Management Plan and considers that the State Party has responded in a positive and constructive manner to its recommendations;
  6. Commends the use of the ICOMOS Guidance on HIAs for Cultural World Heritage Properties and encourages the State Party to continue using the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) approach in the impact assessment;
  7. Requests the State Party to keep the Committee informed about heritage impact mitigation measures and further developments regarding the Terminal 2 Project and also requests the State Party to ensure the completion of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and the mitigation measures or compensation plan that may be proposed in relation to the World Heritage property;
  8. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2018, 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 43rd session in 2019.
Draft Decision: 41 COM 7B.60

The World Heritage Committee,

  1. Having examined Document WHC/17/41.COM/7B,
  2. Recalling Decision 39 COM 7B.90, adopted at its 39th session (Bonn, 2015),
  3. Expresses its appreciation for the substantive response that the State Party provided to its recommendations and for the high level of the documentation and intervention projects of elevators and other structures in the World Heritage property;
  4. Notes that the implementation of the Urban Development Policy and its application in Valparaiso will take a number of years and urges the State Party to implement transitionary measures to remedy weaknesses in the present mechanisms for the management and conservation of the property and in its relation to the urban development context of Valparaiso;
  5. Also expresses its appreciation to the State Party for the revisions to the Puerto Baron Project and the undertaking of Heritage Impact Assessments (HIAs) and the adoption of an Archaeological Heritage Management Plan and considers that the State Party has responded in a positive and constructive manner to its recommendations;
  6. Commends the use of the ICOMOS Guidance on HIAs for Cultural World Heritage Properties and encourages the State Party to continue using the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) approach in the impact assessment;
  7. Requests the State Party to keep the Committee informed about heritage impact mitigation measures and further developments regarding the Terminal 2 Project and also requests the State Party to ensure the completion of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and the mitigation measures or compensation plan that may be proposed in relation to the World Heritage property;
  8. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2018, 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 43rd session in 2019.
Report year: 2017
Chile
Date of Inscription: 2003
Category: Cultural
Criteria: (iii)
Documents examined by the Committee
SOC Report by the State Party
Report (2016) .pdf
arrow_circle_right 41COM (2017)
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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