Key Issues in the Relationship between the World Heritage Convention and Climate Change Regulation

Abstract

Current estimates indicate that average global temperatures might increase to 6.4°C between 1990 and 2100, due to the decisive influence of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions. Even limiting projected temperature increases to below 4°C above preindustrial levels would require a radical restructuring of the economic character of contemporary society. This is extremely problematic, given that it is currently believed that the 2°C increase from pre-industrial levels set by the Copenhagen Accord and restated by the Cancun and Durban Agreements will result in a serious impact on human institutions and ecosystems.The effect of climate change on World Heritage is an assessed reality, both with respect to cultural and natural heritage. In fact, it threatens the outstanding universal value (OUV) of protected sites, based on their unique character for humanity as a whole, so much so that it might drastically modify the current World Heritage List. This explains why climate change is constantly cited in the documents of the World Heritage Committee as a threat to World Heritage sites.Certainly it has a different impact on natural and cultural World Heritage. On the one hand, the increase in subsidence is particularly important for cultural heritage due to changes in ground and water levels, storm and wind damage to buildings, as well as deterioration of facades arising from thermal stress. On the other hand, damage to natural heritage is likely to be caused by coastal and riverside flooding as well as the melting of glaciers due to an increase in average temperature levels. However, the natural and cultural implications of sites of outstanding universal value are usually closely intertwined.