Source: SWEDISH NATIONAL HERITAGE BOARD RIKSANTIKVARIEÄMBETET, text by Elene Negussie

UNESCO has raised concerns that the proposed mining project in Kallak/Gállok could have a detrimental impact on the Laponia World Heritage Site. These concerns were detailed in a report released on Friday, July 4, following a site visit by UNESCO representatives earlier in the spring of 2024. The findings and recommendations from the visit will inform a decision by the World Heritage Committee during its 47th session, scheduled to take place in Paris from July 6 to 16.

The situation stems from a 2023 decision by UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee to initiate reactive monitoring of the Laponia site. This move followed the Swedish government's approval of a mining concession in Kallak/Gállok—a development considered potentially harmful to the integrity of the World Heritage Site.

The report includes nine key recommendations aimed at preserving the unique values of Laponia. Chief among them is a call for no further decisions that would allow mining in Kallak/Gállok. It also urges the development of a sustainable management strategy for the site and its surrounding landscape. In addition, UNESCO recommends a clearer definition of the natural and cultural values that underpin Laponia's World Heritage status, and the creation of a buffer zone to protect vital reindeer migration routes located outside the current boundaries of the heritage area.

" This is serious criticism directed at Sweden's management of the World Heritage Site Laponia in an international context. We are now awaiting the World Heritage Committee's decision on the report, after which we need to take a position on how Sweden should respond to the criticism, says National Heritage Commissioner Susanne Thedéen"- source Riksantikvarieämbetet.

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Photo: Laponia, by ICR