Results of the national selection for 2012.
The French Committee chose two projects:
These applications will undergo international evaluation over a period of 18 months before a decision is given by the World Heritage Committee.
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A message for all those who are following our candidature
For a year now, you have followed and encouraged the Chaîne des Puys and Limagne fault candidature to become a UNESCO World Heritage site, firstly through the Local Council of the Puy-de-Dôme’s internet site, then on our Facebook page, and, from autumn 2011, on our candidature web site. This level of support is a mark of the success of this large scale and ambitious project and it demonstrates both the degree of commitment to this exceptional geological site by the local population, and the amount of support it can generate.
Unfortunately, despite the fact that the scientific and technical qualities of the project were unanimously praised, the Chaîne des Puys and Limagne fault application was not one of the two French sites chosen by the state to be put forward to the World Heritage Committee. Instead two cultural sites were chosen -the Cave of Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc and The ‘Climats’ of the Vineyards of Burgundy. This in no way diminishes the drive or the motivation of the Local Council and its partners, notably the Auvergne Volcano Regional Park and the Universities of Clermont, to have the universal value of this exceptional tectono-volcanic site recognised.
Therefore the application will be resubmitted to the French Committee for World Heritage Sites in November 2012. Meanwhile the work on raising awareness about the site, which began in 2010, will be continued, alongside the implementation of the management plan.
We know that we can continue to count on your collective support, which is at the heart of our project, during this ongoing process. Let us all keep working together for the development and protection of our natural heritage.
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Document from the French government
“… Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Transports and Housing, and Fréderic Mitterand, Minister of Culture and Communication … would like to highlight the quality of the Chaîne des Puys – Limagne fault proposal, submitted under the heading of natural sites, and it should be resubmitted for consideration as soon as possible… » (excerpt from the press release below)
