Lake Baikal (Russian Federation) (N 754)

Decision:  38 COM 7B.76

 The World Heritage Committee,

1.  Having examined Document WHC-14/38.COM/7B.Add,
2.  Recalling Decision 37 COM 7B.22, adopted at its 37th session (Phnom Penh, 2013),
3.  Welcomes the information provided by the State Party that the Baikalsk Pulp and Paper
Mill (BPPM) has been shut down, although it continues to produce heat, and requests
the State Party to develop a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment  (EIA) on the
future use of the BPPM site and its impact on the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV)
of the property;  
4.  Notes with concern that the State Party of Mongolia continues to consider the
development of dams on the Selenga and Orkhon rivers, and also requests  the State
Party of Mongolia to ensure that no dam development on either river proceeds before
the potential impacts, including cumulative impacts,  of these projects on OUV have
been duly assessed, in  conformity  with IUCN’s World Heritage Advice Note on
Environmental Assessment, and to provide a copy of the environmental impact
assessments of these projects to the World Heritage Centre in line with Paragraph 172
of the Operational Guidelines;
5.  Further requests the State Party of Mongolia to invite an IUCN reactive monitoring
mission, with an invitation also extended to the authorities of the Russian Federation, in
order to review the scope, scale and status of the dam projects in Mongolia and to
have a discussion early in the planning process about the potential impacts of these
projects on the property;
6.  Reiterates its position that mining is incompatible with World Heritage status, and
requests furthermore the State Party of the Russian Federation to ensure that mining at
the Kholodninskoye deposit remains prohibited beyond 31 December 2014;
7.  Expresses its concern over the continued development of the “Baikal Harbour” and
“Gate of Baikal” Special Economic Zones and the lack of assessment of the impacts of
these developments  on the  OUV  of the property, and  requests moreover  the State
Party to undertake a Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Special Economic
Zones (SEZs), in particular concerning tourism development within the property and its
vicinity, in order to identify alternatives that will not have a negative impact on the OUV
of the property;
8.  Also expresses its concern over reported proposals to introduce changes to Federal
Law N 94-FZ which would weaken the protection of the property, and requests in
addition the State Party to provide further information on these proposed changes;  
9.  Urges the State Party to expedite the development of management plans for the
protected areas which constitute the property as well as an integrated management
plan for the property as a whole, in line with Paragraph 112 of the  Operational
Guidelines;
10.  Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by
1 February 2015, an updated report, including a 1-page executive summary, on the
state of conservation of the property,  including  on the  implementation of the actions
noted above,  for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 39th session in
2015.