Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 September 2014
281. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will facilitate a site (details supplied) in County Kerry becoming a UNESCO world heritage site; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34941/14]
View answerUNESCO sets out a formal process for State signatories to the World Heritage Convention to nominate properties for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The nomination process is initiated by the State authorities drawing up a Tentative List of what they consider to be the most important heritage sites within their national boundaries. A particular criterion is that a site must be considered to be of outstanding universal value, defined by UNESCO as meaning of “cultural and or natural significance which is so exceptional as to transcend national boundaries and to be of common importance for present and future generations of all humanity.” Following a public consultation process and consideration by an expert advisory group, a new World Heritage List Tentative List for Ireland was approved and submitted to UNESCO in March 2010 containing the following sites:
- The Burren;
- The Céide Fields and the North West Mayo Boglands;
- The Monastic City of Clonmacnoise and its Cultural Landscape;
- The Historic City of Dublin;
- Early Medieval Monastic Sites;
- The Royal Sites of Ireland; and
- The Western Stone Forts.
The case referred to had not been identified as a potential nomination at that stage and consequently was not part of the deliberations of the expert advisory group.
The nomination of a property to the World Heritage List is a significant undertaking that requires the development of comprehensive nomination documentation, including a management plan for the property. Following submission of a nomination to UNESCO, it is evaluated by three advisory bodies:
- the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS);
- the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN); and
- the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM).
Once the site has been evaluated, the intergovernmental World Heritage Committee makes the final decision regarding the site’s inclusion on the World Heritage List.
My Department’s policy, which mirrors that of UNESCO, is that nominations for world heritage status must be driven in the first instance by local authorities and communities. Against that background, my Department hosted a seminar in September 2013 for local authorities and community representatives from the areas of the sites on Ireland’s current Tentative List to gauge the level of interest in the potential nominations and to clarify the significant research and other requirements involved in preparing nomination documentation. Discussions have subsequently taken place in relation to all the sites on the Tentative List and my Department is working with stakeholders to consider and advance the next steps in these cases.
As indicated above, the site referred to by the Deputy is not on the current Tentative List. However, I am aware and encouraged by the extent of the local interest and support for the plans to bid for World Heritage inscription. My Department has met with local representatives on a number of occasions to discuss the advancement of the project and will continue to support these efforts to the greatest extent possible within available resources and in light of the need to service the nominations that are already on the existing Tentative List.
