Decision: 34 COM 7B.25

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC-10/34.COM/7B.Add,
2. Recalling Decision 33 COM 7B.31, adopted at its 33rd session (Seville, 2009),
3. Strongly regrets that the State Party appears to have licensed a significant open cast gold mining operation within the World Heritage property, and has also excised other areas from protected status, and also regrets that the State Party did not take into account the previous requests of the World Heritage Committee in taking these actions;
4. Notes that the boundaries of the World Heritage property as inscribed by the Committee have not been amended, and therefore requests the State Party to reconsider its recent boundary demarcation exercises in order to restore the protected status of all areas within the World Heritage property, including all areas that have recently been excluded from the Yugyd Va National Park;
5. Strongly urges the State Party of the Russian Federation to take all necessary steps, with provincial and local government as appropriate, to immediately halt mining activities within the property;
6. Calls o nall companies holding licenses for mining in the World Heritage property, with the support of their investors, to not proceed with mining activities, in line with the international policy statement of the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) of not undertaking these activities in World Heritage properties, as also endorsed by the World Heritage Committee;
7. Also requests the State Party to invite a joint World Heritage Centre/IUCN reactive monitoring mission to the property, in order to review the mining threats to the property, to confirm the integrity of its boundaries, and to advise on the effectiveness of the protection and management of the property;
8. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2011, a report on the state of conservation of the property for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 35th session in 2011 taking into account results of a joint World Heritage Centre / IUCN reactive monitoring mission to the property.