Decision 45 COM 7B.94

Central Sikhote-Alin (Russian Federation) (N 766bis)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/23/45.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 44 COM 7B.105 adopted at its extended 44th session (Fuzhou/online, 2021),
3. Welcomes the establishment of a Coordinating Council for the integrated management of the property and encourages the State Party to ensure that the Council implements tasks proposed in the Joint Action Plan of the Integrated Management Plan that will enhance integrated management of the property, and to ensure representation from all component parts of the property;
4. Recalling previous concerns around the limited protection conveyed by the proposed buffer zone of the Bikin National Park and large-scale logging activities and the associated increase in forest roads along the boundaries of the Sikhote-Alin Strict Nature Reserve, requests to the State Party to:
   1. Ensure that the process of designating an adequate buffer zone for the property is undertaken in a coordinated manner across all components,
   2. Finalize the designation of an adequate formal buffer zone for the Bikin River Valley component, as already requested by Decision 42 COM 8B.9 and in line with the recommendations of the 2018 IUCN Evaluation,
   3. Strengthen the regulation, in the Sikhote-Alin Strict Nature Reserve, of logging activities in the vicinity of the property beyond the buffer zone;
5. Notes with appreciation the progress in extending the boundaries of the Sikhote-Alin Strict Nature Reserve, and also requests the State Party to submit a proposal through a Minor Boundary Modification procedure to reflect the extension in the inscribed property, as well as formally designate the buffer zones for the property under the Convention, in conformity with Paragraphs 163 and 164 of the Operational Guidelines;
6. Urges the State Party to develop and adopt a long-term vision to ensure the connectivity of Amur tiger habitat at the landscape level, through a range of strategies, including building enhanced connectivity with other protected areas, and investigating conservation connectivity strategies outside the formal protected area system;
7. Further requests the State Party to clarify the status of the eco-tourism strategy for the entire property, submit it to the World Heritage Centre for review by IUCN when available, and ensure that it clearly defines the type of activities permitted and outlines how impacts of tourism and recreational use will be monitored and controlled across the entire property;
8. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2024, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for review by the World Heritage Centre and IUCN.