Vat Phou and Associated Ancient Settlements within the Champasak Cultural Landscape

• Ground transport infrastructure (New infrastructure construction, including new proposed roads)
• Housing (New constructions contributing to the haphazard densification of the main monumental complex)
• Management systems/Management Plan (Lack of a coordinated management mechanism)
• Impacts of tourism/visitors/recreation
• Interpretative and Visitation facilities (Parking lot and visitor centre)
• Human resources (Lack of sufficient professional staff)
• Water infrastructure related to water supply

Total amount provided to the property: UNESCO/Japanese Funds-in-Trust project: USD 379,040 (1996-1997); Projects funded by Italy through the Lerici Foundation: USD 482,194 (1996-2004, 3 project phases): Phase I (1996-1997), USD 161,124; Phase II (1998-1999), USD 164,000; Phase III (2003-2005), USD 157,070; UNESCO/France Cooperation Agreement: 20,000 EUR (2020-2021) jointly for Vat Phou and the Plain of Jars

The State Party did not submit the state of conservation report, which was requested by the World Heritage Committee at its extended 44th session (Fuzhou/online, 2021).

On 22 February 2022, the State Party submitted an updated Management Plan for the property, which was subsequently reviewed by ICOMOS. On two separate occasions, the World Heritage Centre requested additional information under the provisions of Paragraph 174 of the Operational Guidelines.

On 11 August 2021, 20 May 2022 and June 2023, the World Heritage Centre wrote to the State Party to request additional information on the reported construction of the hydropower dam at Phou Ngoy (formerly Lat Sau), located 10 km downstream of Pakse, close to the northern buffer zone of the World Heritage property. In these letters, the World Heritage Centre also recommended that the State Party adopt a proactive approach and conduct adequate Impact Assessments, such as a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) and/or an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), with a specific analysis of potential threats and the direct, indirect and cumulative impacts (in relation to other infrastructures) of the development project on the World Heritage property, carried out in line with the most recent Guidance and Toolkit for Impact Assessments in a World Heritage Context.

On 16 June 2022, the World Heritage Centre wrote to the State Party to request further information on third-party reports of potentially inappropriate landscape interventions, such as alien tree planting at the property, which has been funded by the European Union.

At the time of writing the present report, the State Party has not responded to any of these letters.

The progress made by the State Party on updating the Management Plan for the property is welcome. The ICOMOS Technical Review noted that the Management Plan has been done well, as it provides a major framework for discussion and the identification of challenges, while also including some additional material. The Technical Review noted that this is a preliminary plan that still requires augmentation to create a comprehensive document. Principle concerns are the embedding of clearly defined processes for protecting the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), including due to urban development and illegal land conversion. The Technical Review identified several areas for improvement, including inconsistencies to approaches to for instance logging and farming in Zone 2 (which are prohibited but occur), the need for application of the enforcement remedies for all illegal activities and the clarification of the boundaries of the buffer zone. The Technical Review also identified the need for a review of the 2022-2026 Action Plan to align it with the Management Plan. It also recommends the 2016 Champasak Cultural Landscape Master Plan be updated.

In the absence of the requested State Party report on the state of conservation of the property, it is not possible to provide further analysis on the Committee’s past requests to the State Party, which included:

• Concern on the lack of funding to construct the planned road network, the delay of which leads to continuous vehicular traffic through the property, with consequent systemic negative impacts;
• An up-to-date topographic map of the property as inscribed in 2001, requested by 1 February 2022;
• A report on the state of implementation of the mitigation measures that were suggested in the HIA on the water supply extension undertaken by Champasak Water Supply State Enterprise;
• The establishment of a legal framework which would require that appropriate Impact Assessments are carried out proactively for all development projects that could have potential impacts on the OUV of World Heritage properties in the Lao PDR.

The absence of a State Party response to several letters from the World Heritage Centre sent in the framework of Paragraph 174 of the Operational Guidelines, notably regarding the European Union-funded tree planting project and the Phou Ngoy Dam hydropower development project, is regrettable. Both projects could potentially have permanent negative impacts on the OUV of the property. In the case of the tree planting project, this may affect a number of natural and human-made attributes that form the endemic environment and are an integral part of the property.

The Strategic Environmental Assessment for the Phou Ngoy Dam hydropower development project predicts various direct and indirect impacts of this dam on the environment, surrounding populations and their livelihoods. Therefore, both direct and short-term impacts on the OUV of the property, as well as indirect and cumulative impacts over time, are anticipated. It is imperative that a full, independent HIA or EIA that includes cultural, environmental and social components be commissioned before any further decision is made on this project. Considering the current, critical potential for highly negative impacts on the OUV of this property, it is recommended that the World Heritage Committee request the State Party invite a Reactive Monitoring mission to the property to assess its state of conservation and evaluate the threat that Phou Ngoy Dam hydropower development project poses to the OUV of the property.