Ireland’s World Heritage - Review of Tentative List

Mr. John Gormley, T.D., Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has today (1 December 2008) initiated a review of Ireland’s Tentative List of potential sites for World Heritage Site nomination. He has established an Expert Advisory Group to carry out a review of the current Tentative List and to draw up a new draft list for submission to him in Spring 2009. The existing Tentative List dates back to 1992.

Ireland ratified the World Heritage Convention in 1991 and undertook the responsibility of protecting and conserving both national and international world heritage, of maintaining a Tentative List of potential sites for World Heritage Site nomination and nominating national heritage sites cultural, natural and mixed from this list to the World Heritage Committee for World Heritage Listing.

At the present time Ireland has two World Heritage Sites inscribed on the prestigious World Heritage List. Brú Na Bóinne in County Meath was inscribed in 1993 and Skellig Michael, County Kerry in 1996.

As part of the Tentative List public consultation process, interested parties and individuals are invited to request a copy of Tentative List and World Heritage Status - a guidance document which is available from the Department to enable them to make submissions on sites to be included on Ireland’s Tentative List of potential nominees as World Heritage Sites. The guidance document includes details on UNESCO World Heritage criteria, a definition of what constitutes Outstanding Universal Value in a World Heritage context, an explanation of authenticity, integrity and significance on a global basis. The guidance document and formal proposal forms are available from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (details supplied below) and are also downloadable from the World Heritage Section of the Department’s website on www.environ.ie.

Those making submissions are requested to take note, in particular, of the following:

in order for a site to be successfully inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List it must have unique Outstanding Universal Value and not just be of value in an Irish context; and

sites nominated for inclusion on the Tentative List should ideally be on the Record of Monuments and Places or on a local authority Record of Protected Structures or within a Special Area of Conservation or Special Protection Area etc.

Interested parties and individuals are invited to make written submissions, no later than Friday 30 January 2009. The Department is subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information legislation and submissions received may have to be released into the public domain, should they later become the subject of a Freedom of Information Request. Submissions should only be made on the formal application form and may be returned by post or email to:

Heritage Policy and Architectural Protection Section,
Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government,
1, Ardcavan Business Park,
Ardcavan,
County Wexford.

Telephone :01-8883061
E-mail: worldheritagetentativelist@environ.ie

Additional information on the membership of the Expert Advisory Group, it’s terms of reference, the Tentative List Review Process, Ireland’s current Tentative List, UNESCO’s World Heritage Operational Guidelines and Criteria and Management Plans for the two current world heritage sites may be accessed in the World Heritage Section of the Department’s website
www.environ.ie. More detailed information on UNESCO World Heritage may be accessed on www.unesco.org.

For further details visit the website: http://www.environ.ie/en/Heritage/WorldHeritage/