ICOMOS TECHNICAL REVIEW

Property
State Party
Property ID
Date of Inscription
Criterion
Project

Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region
Japan1535
2017(ii)(iii)
Kanezaki Fishing Harbor Improvement ProjectBackground
The World Heritage property of the Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata
Region in Japan was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2017. The property comprises a total ofeight components: Okinoshima and three nearby islets, two shrines on Oshima Island and twolocations on the Mainland. The buffer zone encloses a long stretch of sea, linking Okinoshima Island tothe coastal areas and comprising Oshima as well as Jinoshima Islands. The Sacred Island is today only
accessible by boat, nearly exclusively by local fishermen.
During the nomination process, ICOMOS requested further information in its letter dated 7 October
2016 regarding various development projects planned by the local authorities in charge of Okinoshima
in different parts of the buffer zone. One of these projects is soon to start in Kanezaki, located at theeastern limit of the buffer zone on the Mainland and facing Jinoshima Island.
As part of the Kanezaki Fishing Harbor Improvement Project, a 20-page long Heritage Impact
Assessment (HIA) was sent to ICOMOS on 3 September 2019 by the State Party, via the World Heritage
Centre, detailing the planned construction of extensions.
This document has served as the basis for the present Technical review.

Improvement of the facility of the Kanezaki Fishing Harbour
The HIA report was written by Munakata City Office.
The harbour project is part of the work being carried out by the same city office of Munakata, andtherefore, to assuage any concerns regarding a conflict of interests, the review process included, inaddition to Munakata City Landscape Advisor Meeting, the Experts Meeting for the Sacred Island ofOkinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region, including its Subcommittees on Preservationand Management of Component Sites and on Buffer Zone Conservation. In addition, the Council forPreservation and Utilization for the Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata
Region consulted a group of independent academic experts to study the impact of the project.
The technical documents transmitted in the HIA report about the proposed changes to the port facilityof Kanezaki are reasonably detailed. They indicate the location of the changes planned at the westernentrance of the port, the length of the new roads, parking and wind barrier constructions, as well as
the surface of the new dock facility and its height. The objectives of these improvements are also wellstated. From the data presented in the HIA report, it appears that this project was finalised with thewill to minimise any possible impact on the Outstanding Universal Value of the World Heritage
property. The photos are explicit, showing the absence of any significant visual disturbance in relation
to the planned project. The different maps and views also indicate that the direct impact of theseconstructions on the components of the property will be very limited, as all the new constructions will
be positioned in a corner of the buffer zone, with no building or wind barrier exceeding 5m in height.
Furthermore, the view from Okinoshima Island to Kanezaki Fishing Harbour, a straight distance of55km, is blocked by Jinoshima Island.
However, as the expansion of the harbour facilities under this project will still consequently change
the traditional appearance of the fishing harbour within the buffer zone, even if only a little, it isadvised that the Standards of Permission for Important Fishing Ports for Landscape mentioned in theMunakata City Landscape Plan (an extract of which is presented in item 6 of section 4 of the HIA report)
should be carefully followed.

Conclusions
The information provided by the State Party on the Kanezaki Fishing Harbor Improvement Project showthat there is no apparent risk of adverse impact of the planned constructions on the overall
Outstanding Universal Value of the World Heritage property. The project appears to have integrated
the constraints of the buffer zone into the plans, in order to limit risks as much as possible.
ICOMOS therefore suggests that this project could be carried out, following the provisions of theStandards of Permission for Important Fishing Ports for Landscape.

ICOMOS remains at the disposal of the State Party for further clarification on the above or assistanceas required.

ICOMOS, Charenton-le-Pont
July 2020