FUZHOU, JULY 22 – Venice and its lagoon will not be blacklisted as Endangered World Heritage Site. The22 announcement by the UNESCO Committee meeting in Fuzhou (China) followed the ban on large cruise ships ordered last month by the government of Prime Minister Mario Draghi.
The decision spares the Veneto capital the humiliation of the blacklist but the city and its delicate ecosystem remain under special surveillance. The Italian government must develop an organic proposal to help solve the various problems of Venice, including a series of corrective measures to be applied within a specific timeframe. The proposal must be developed hand in hand with the World Heritage Center and its advisory bodies and will then be reviewed at the 46th session of the World Heritage Committee.
In the meanwhile, by December 1, 2022, the World Heritage Center must receive an updated report on the state of conservation and progress in Venice.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi expressed satisfaction in light of the news, “The government’s decisions on large ships have contributed to achieving this wonderful result, and for this reason, I thank the Cabinet for their excellent work.”
The proposal to include Venice and its lagoon among the sites in danger had been made by the technical evaluation body ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites). Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio has also expressed satisfaction, as he underlined the complete and consistent willingness to collaborate with UNESCO and the World Heritage Center to ensure increased protection of the emblematic site of Venice through the preservation of the “Valore Universale Eccezionale” (Outstanding Universal Value) of the lagoon. (@BrittanyBryantF)
