Decision 43 COM 7A.3

Everglades National Park (United States of America) (N 76)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/19/43.COM/7A.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 41 COM 7A.1, adopted at its 41st session (Krakow, 2017),
3. Welcomes the progress achieved in implementing the 2006 corrective measures and notes with satisfaction that their full operational benefits are expected to be in place by mid-June 2020, that water quality targets have already been met and that “supercolonies” of wading birds have returned to the property;
4. Commends the State Party for also implementing next generation restoration projects in order to achieve the Desired state of conservation for the removal of the property from the List of World Heritage in Danger (DSOCR) by 2025-2026, and congratulates it for committing as much as USD 2.5 billion over four years to advance the restoration of the Everglades;
5. Notes with concern the ongoing threat from invasive alien species (IAS), and requests the State Party to ensure a continued, long-term allocation of resources to control the existing IAS inside the property, and for the mangement strategy to emphasize prevention and early detection with rapid response measures;
6. Appreciates that the General Management Plan (GMP) of the property aims to respond to the impacts of climate change, including sea-level rise, and reiterates its requests to the State Party to submit the GMP to the World Heritage Centre and IUCN;
7. Also recalling its established position on the incompatibility of oil and gas exploration and exploitation with World Heritage status, notes with utmost concern the prospect of exploratory drilling within the Water Conservation Areas located upstream of the property, and urges the State Party to ensure a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) that assesses the possible impacts on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property is undertaken, in line with the IUCN World Heritage Advice Note on Environmental Assessment, and to submit the EIA to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN as a matter of priority and before conducting any hydrocarbon drilling activities;
8. Also reiterates its request to the State Party to inform the World Heritage Centre about the potential for hydraulic fracturing projects in proximity of the property and the proposal of a utility transmission line along its eastern border;
9. Also requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2020, 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 44th session in 2020;
10. Decides to retain Everglades National Park (United States of America) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.