“Environmental Law and the Threats of Global Climate Change to Cultural Heritage Sites” Stefan Gruber Faculty of Law, University of Sydney

Cultural heritage sites Culture plays a significant role in the survival of all individual parts of populations as distinguishable elements of humankind Heritage sites remind people of their cultural identities, pasts and traditions Reminders of the human need to adapt to the environment What is considered as valuable and as worthy of being preserved for future generations?

Early impacts of climate change First human settlements in the early stages of the Holocene interglacial, 8,000 BC Warm period before Little Ice Age (ca ) Impacts on viniculture and agriculture

Deterioration of permafrost Hastened soil erosion – Ground starts to slump – Land slides – Coastal erosion – No protection by sea ice

Deterioration of permafrost 2 Hastened decay of organic material – No protection by ice – BUT: the melting of ice sheets sometimes reveals archaeological treasures – Sites are exposed to humidity Douglas Mawson’s hut at Cape Denison in the Antarctic Commonwealth Bay, 1911 and 1914 Scott’s hut, Cape Evans, Antarctica; 1 kilometre away from the Barne Glacier and its fifty metres high terminal wall of ice

Desertification UNCCD, Art. 1(a): “land degradation in arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas resulting from various factors, including climatic variations and human activities” Removal of a protective cover from fertile soil in dry zones Sand dunes stabilised by vegetation Increasing number of windstorms Irreversible process

Desertification 2 Sand encroachments Grinding effects of sandstorms Sites are deserted by local population

Ocean rise and floods 85 % of Earth’s freshwater is frozen at the polar caps 70% of the world population live in coastal areas Coastal erosion Floods in river deltas Threat to groundwater, e.g. island communities in Southern Pacific region Increasing number of heavy storms

Cultural landscapes Often very fragile ecosystems Loss of local population – secure ecological stability – prevent soil erosion Loss of cultural landscapes – Landscapes shaped by humans – Regional architecture – Ecosystems Loss of intangible heritage

UNFCCC Prevention or adaptation? Or both? Mitigation and adaptation are no antipodes, but closely interlinked

World Heritage Convention The duty to identify a nation’s heritage and to maintain the integrity of its outstanding universal value World Heritage and climate change “[The State Party] will do all it can to this end, to the utmost of its own resources...” The Precautionary Principle List of World Heritage in Danger – Monitoring through IUCN and ICOMOS – States Parties report on a regular basis

Cultural heritage in arctic and alpine regions Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (Annex V) Increased monitoring Salvage operations

Combating desertification UNCCD More guidance of local communities Threats to dry areas – Short-term economic aims – Unsustainable land use – Unsustainable water use – Development pressure

Combating desertification 2 Efficient regulation only through a combined application of water law, land use law and construction law Specific actions regarding heritage sites – Buffer zones – Existing sand encroachment must be removed continuously – Increased monitoring of remote sites

Preventive measures against flooding Embankments Compulsory protection plans – UNESCO: Overtopping of Thames barrier would cause damage of GBP 30 billion and flood three World Heritage Sites – Hurricane Katrina caused damage of over USD 80 billion. The implementation of the protection plan would have cost USD 14 billion

Protecting rural cultural landscapes Land use regulations prevention of further soil degradation protection of water supplies sustainable access to resources minimising development pressure Establishment of buffer zones Adaptation of agriculture to climate change Support for rural communities Protection of minorities Prevention of further urbanisation

Conclusion Law must be used in a holistic way to create a comprehensive system of legal instruments and enforcement mechanisms Possible precautionary measures to potential threats must be examined as early as possible Cultural heritage is a non-renewable resource!