World Heritage Scanned Nomination File Name: 1143.pdf UNESCO Region: EUROPE AND NORTH AMERICA __________________________________________________________________________________________________ SITE NAME: Vegaøyan -- The Vega Archipelago DATE OF INSCRIPTION: 7th July 2004 STATE PARTY: NORWAY CRITERIA: C (v) CL DECISION OF THE WORLD HERITAGE COMMITTEE: Excerpt from the Report of the 28th Session of the World Heritage Committee Criterion (v): The Vega archipelago reflects the way generations of fishermen/farmers have, over the past 1500 years, maintained a sustainable living in an inhospitable seascape near the Arctic Circle, based on the now unique practice of eider down harvesting, and it also celebrate the contribution made by women to the eider down process. BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS A cluster of dozens of islands centered on Vega, just south of the Arctic Circle, forms a cultural landscape of 103,710-ha, of which 6,930 is land. The islands bear testimony to a distinctive frugal way of life based on fishing and the harvesting of the down of eider ducks, in an inhospitable environment. There are fishing villages, quays, warehouses, eider houses (built for eider ducks to nest in), farming landscapes, lighthouses and beacons. There is evidence of human settlement from the Stone Age on. By the 9th century, the islands had become an important centre for the supply of down which appears to have accounted for around a third of the islanders’ income. The Vega Archipelago reflects the way fishermen/farmers have, over the past 1500 years, maintained a sustainable living and celebrates the contribution of women to eiderdown harvesting 1.b State, Province or Region: Nordland, Vega 1.d Exact location: N65 47 00 E11 57 00 Norwegian Nomination 2003 – UNESCO World Heritage List VEGAØYAN The Vega Archipelago World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 Introduction In 1994-96, the Nordic Council of Ministers organised a joint interdisciplinary Nordic project to seek new objects and areas that could be appropriate for receiving World Heritage status. The work culminated in a number of recommendations being put forward in a report entitled ”Nordisk Verdensarv/Nordic World Heritage”(NORD 1996:30/31) and these were underlined in a subsequent seminar in 1997 (TemaNord 1997:621). This work was supported by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre,which also part-funded the publication. In a letter to the General Secretary of the Nordic Council of Ministers, dated 4th February 1997, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre wrote: ”This is an excellent report which in addition to evaluating the implementation of the World Heritage Convention in the Nordic Region has identified potential cultural landscapes in the Nordic Region. This project is exemplary for its integration approach to the identification and assessment of both cultural and natural world heritage.” The objective of this work was to raise our eyes above the national sphere and view the natural and cultural values as a whole in a region that has much in common (the five Nordic nations). Particular emphasis was placed on evaluating areas of open countryside (natural heritage areas) with and without cultural content, cultural landscapes and ”mixed sites”, since at that time no such sites in the Nordic region were inscribed on the World Heritage List; it just held a number of sites and monuments of purely cultural value. Several new, potential cultural heritage sites and monuments were also evaluated. The work was undertaken by representatives of the national authorities responsible for managing the natural and cultural heritage in the individual nations. Agreement was reached on the recommendations presented. Iceland ratified the Convention as a direct consequence of the work being undertaken in the Nordic project. In the period since the report was published,the various countries have followed up the recommendations to differing extents, amended them, or carried out additional evaluations. Two large areas in Sweden, the High Coast and southern Öland,both in the Baltic Sea region,have been inscribed on the World Heritage List. Of the areas in Norway proposed in the report,the following four were placed on the official tentative list for Norway submitted on 1st October 2002: 1) the Vega Archipelago, 2) Lofoten, 3) Tysfjord and Hellemobotn, and 4) Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord in western Norway. The project has placed emphasis on assessing various gradients, including physical and cultural geography, topography, land forms and geology, climate and salinity, fauna and vegetation,and aesthetics,natural resources and human use over time. The Nordic region is a part of the world with a great deal of water, fresh water, brackish water and salt water. The Gulf Stream has decisive influence on large parts of Scandinavia. The long coasts bind the nations together and the coastal fairways were for a long time the most important lines of communication linking the peoples inhabiting the Nordic region, and were also of great significance for their contact with the rest of Europe and beyond. The peoples of the Nordic region have lived close to nature and exploited it in their struggle for existence. The Nordic landscape is still in a relatively undisturbed state, substantially more pristine than many other parts of the world. A Nordic perspective on natural and 1 World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 cultural values automatically implies taking a holistic view and taking into account natural resources. The coastal landscapes in the Nordic region vary greatly,from benign and friendly to wild and extreme. In pact with the bounties of nature in the shape of climate, geography, topo- graphy and a basis for earning a living,a variety of coastal cultures have been formed and have evolved over time, some with many features in common, others with very distinctive features. Some people have found a basis for living and working in the outer archipelagos fringing the ocean, on the border between sea and land where biological productivity and diversity are particularly high,but where the weather can be extreme,on the brink between life and death. TheVega Archipelagowas,and still is,one such area. This unique area was evaluated as a potential World Heritage Area in NORD 1996:30/31. That report compared the Vega Archipelago with other archipelagos in the Nordic countries and proposed that it be con- sidered for nomination in combination with the Lofoten Islands. However,the area has since been re-evaluated on an independent footing,as has Lofoten,which now figures separately on the tentative list of Norwegian nominations. Oslo 20th January 2003 2 World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 1 Identification of the Property 1a. Country Norway 1b. County, borough Nordland,Vega 1c. Name of Property Vegaøyan – Vega Archipelago The Vega Archipelago (Vegaøyan)is centrally located on the Helgeland coast,the southern part of the county of Nordland. It is defined here as the actual property hereby nominated for inscription on the World Heritage List. The property is delineated such that it embraces the islands and areas of sea north and west of the main island of Vega, along with certain areas and parts of the coastal strip on the main island. The remainder of the main island of Vega,along with the islands south-east of the main island,are not part of this property thus defined as the Vega Archipelago (Vegaøyan), but are situated in the buffer zone of the nominated property (Annex 1,Map A). 1d. Precise location 65°31’– 65°59’N 11°15’– 12°10’E World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 1e. Maps Annex 1 Boundary of area proposed in 2003 Map A Bedrock geology Map B Quaternary geology Map C Topographical map showing the strandflat Map D Egg and down sites Map E Status of protected areas in 2002 (nature and cultural history reserves) Map F Annex 5 Topographical maps. Scale 1:50 000 (Nos. 1726 I-IV) 1f. Areas of property proposed for inscription and proposed buffer zone Total area of property: 103,710 ha Area of sea: 96,880 ha Area of land: 6,930 ha Total area of proposed buffer zone: 28,040 ha Area of sea (buffer zone): 18,610 ha Area of land (buffer zone): 9,430 ha (margin of error for total area ±30 ha) Description of the boundaries of the nominated property, the Vega Archipelago - Vegaøyan (Annex 1,Map A): The demarcation is determined by the topography,biology,cultural history and present-day land use. On the main island of Vega, the boundary follows the agriculture areas, nature areas and areas for open-air recreation defined in the current Municipal Master Plan. The geographical delimitation of the individual holdings, called “øyvær”, has influenced the demarcation of the outer limit of the property. The Vega Archipelago (Vegaøyan) embraces 15 “øyvær”(an “øyvær”is a physical and social entity consisting of one or more islands). The boundary is demarcated as follows: It is drawn as a straight line between the following islands,islets and skerries,starting from Ervikodden on the south-west coast of the main island of Vega to Muddværet via Gåsflesa, Steinan,Oksknausen,Langskjæret,Nova,Kjeggruva,Kvannflesa,Krappskjæret,Falkflesa, Andersmorten-skjæran, Kinnarøya, Buholman, Hestholmen, Buøya, Trollholmen, Kvig- holmen,Ånskjæret,Indre Hilholmen to the north-west point of Vega. Along the north coast of the main island of Vega, the Vega Archipelago (Vegaøyan) embraces all the nearby islands,along with the Kjellerhaugvatnet and Holandsosen Nature Reserves (Annex 1, Map F). From Sørneset on the west coast, the boundary follows the eastern foot of the mountains across central Vega back to the starting point at Ervikodden. The rest of Vega east of this boundary, together with Ylvingen and the small islands to the south-east,form the buffer zone. The radar on the summit of Gullsvågfjellet is not included in the proposed World Heritage Area and excludes a circular area with radius of 100 m. 4 World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 2 Justification for Inscription 2a. Statement on the significance of the property The unique landscape of the Vega Archipelago,the islands and surrounding shallow water, the seascape, is a living testimony to the everyday life and labour of the people who have lived in this extremely exposed archipelago. This is a stretch of coast where a strandflat, a topographical and geological formation,is specially well developed. As a whole,this excep- tional area comprises an open cultural landscape consisting of a mixture of sea and land. In addition to a multitude of reefs, underwater rocks and shoals, there are more than 6500 islands,islets and skerries within the property. This exposed seascape contains fishing villages with breakwaters, quays and warehouses, sites with ”eider houses” where eggs and down were collected, the homes of fishermen- farmers with dwellings, outhouses, boathouses and islets where livestock grazed and hay was scythed,and navigational aids like lighthouses,lights and other beacons to aid seafaring in the perilous,foul waters. All told,these elements shaped by people relate a long history of use under exceptional living conditions controlled by the climate and the basis endowed by nature. Nature has shaped the people, and over 10,000 years the people have helped to mould the nature into a special landscape with a unique cultural content. A landscape which, to a greater extent than any other coastal landscape on the strandflat, can display relics of the way the coastal inhabitants have traditionally used the sea and the land down the ages. This exceptional landscape is characterised by frugal cultivation, settlements specially accom- modated to the knowledge gained by the inhabitants of the natural conditions locally, and small traces of the laborious toil of generations on the very fringe of the ocean. The unique cultural landscape of the Vega Archipelago holds a multifarious natural and cultural heritage linked to the sea and the land. For the fisherman-farmer, the sea and the land constituted, and still constitute, a combined resource base. The land was, and is, his permanent,though marginal,anchorage. The sea was,and is,his rich,though perilous,arena for life and work. The values in the area are representative for this geo-cultural region that embraces exposed stretches of coast where the traditional livelihood has been a combination of fishing,sealing,collecting eggs and down,and farming. The landscape is also the bearer of distinctive,unique cultural traditions that can only be associated with the natural condi- tions on the strandflat,the shallow sea and the bountiful biological production in the waters washing the Helgeland coast. The universal value of the Vega Archipelago lies in the clear handing down of history and cultural traditions within an island realm integrating both land and sea, where new com- mercial enterprises have had little impact on this landscape,which embraces both land and sea (seascape), in a way that breaks the continuity back in time. The area is not represen- tative for species threatened by extinction, huge monuments, or the ingenious creations of architects. The values and qualities can be linked to: - the unique topography and geology with the best-developed strandflat (see chap. 3a) containing thousands of islands offering space for marginal settlement and farming,lofty coastal mountains providing secure landmarks along the fairway and for the people on the islands, an area that clearly illustrates the tremendous importance of the Gulf Stream in making it feasible to live on the Arctic Circle; 5 World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 - the rich natural resources which, down the ages, have given the area cultural and social importance, and political power, in a region extending far beyond the coast of northern Norway; - the early permanent settlement and long,unbroken use of the sea and the land in combi- nation,a use that has been accommodated to the natural conditions,has helped to enhance the biodiversity and is representative for the archipelagic areas within a clearly defined geo-cultural region - ”Life on the Edge”; - the seascape out towards Egga,the edge of the continental shelf,was the “arable field”of the fisherman-farmer, frequently harvested at the risk of his life despite the many navi- gational aids in the archipelago, such as lighthouses, lights, beacons and stakes; safe seafaring and fishing in these foul waters depended mostly on knowledge of the weather, currents and unmarked fishing grounds passed down from one generation to the next. Ever since the first people settled close to the ice margin, the meat, eggs and down of a variety of birds have been an important resource. The eider holds a foremost position here and represents an important element in the cultural traditions and resource base of the coastal inhabitants. The unique millennium-long tradition of maintaining egg and down sites, where the inhabitants of the archipelago provided ideal, protected homes for nesting eiders,is an example of a unique interplay between people and a non-domesticated species of bird. The eider is a wild bird which, in the breeding season, has voluntarily sought the protection of people to gain a haven from storms and predators as the best way of producing the largest possible number of viable chicks. This symbiotic contact between man and bird long ago changed the attitudes of the people towards this species and also the behaviour of the eiders towards people. Both derived value and pleasure from the contact. As a form of gratitude for their effort,the people received eggs and down,and at the same time developed a personal relationship with the wild ”tame ducks”, looking forward to meeting them the following year. This is an example of one of the relationships between nature and man that gives the cultural landscape of the Vega Archipelago its character and outstanding universal value. The property is, moreover, excellent for carrying out research on a range of topics linked with natural history and cultural history. This is an island realm close to the Arctic Circle which, above any others, represents the epitome of the island communities found in the archipelagos formed by and on the strand- flat along the coast of Nordland. It stands out as a cultural landscape,and a seascape,where the cultural monuments are not magnificent, but where traces are present everywhere and bear witness to 300 generations of inherited knowledge,toil and joy. It testifies to a dynamic interaction between nature and man over time in a marginal area of the world. The Vega Archipelago stands as a testimony to the life and work of the inhabitants of an extremely exposed coast. The people have created a cultural landscape of fishing villages and farms, where buildings and traces in the landscape relate the history of the living and working conditions of the people. Nature has shaped the people and the people have helped to shape nature in a perpetual interaction,creating a unique landscape with unique traditions. (Annex 2,Photographs) 6 World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 2b. Comparative analysis The Vega Archipelago in a Norwegian context The full length of the Norwegian coastline is all of 83,000 km, between 58° and 72° N. Characteristic elements in the landscape of the long,mountainous coast are numerous fjords extending far into the hinterland,a multitude of coastal islands and large archipelagos. The diversity is great. The country has always been oriented towards the sea, and local com- munities have gradually evolved with similarities as well as dissimilarities and specialities, depending on the local natural resources. On long stretches of the coast from Stavanger (59°N) to Magerøy (72°N),tectonic processes and various forms of erosion have shaped a topographical feature called the strandflat. Groups of islands and archipelagos are strung out along parts of the strandflat coasts. The strandflat is best developed and broadest in Helgeland, around 65° N, and the Vega Archipelago, made up of more than 6500 islands, islets and skerries, occupies the heart of this area. This district became inhabited shortly after the last Ice Age, and the present cultural landscape is a result of 10,000 years of human influence. The Vega Archipelago in a Nordic context The area has previously been evaluated in a Nordic context as part of the ”Nordic World Heritage”project (Nord 1996:31). A group of experts from the Nordic countries concluded that the Vega Archipelago,because of its extreme exposure to the Atlantic Ocean,its unique topography and its unique cultural content, could not be likened to any of the few Nordic coastal landscapes that were appraised as having outstanding universal value. The Vega Archipelago contains a representative selection of elements that are special for Nordic coastal culture. The area is characterised by a hard climate,topographical peculiari- ties, rich fish resources, continuous settlement, a coast-related power structure based on fisheries, traditions linked with the exploitation of other marginal natural resources, the fisherman-farmer’s combined use of the sea and the land,and the operation of egg and down sites. The Helgeland coast is far more extreme than the exceptional cultural landscapes of the archipelagos in the brackish-water Gulf of Bothnia, which represent different natural and cultural values since climate, topography, salinity, natural resources and traditions distinguish them clearly from the Vega Archipelago. The Vega Archipelago in a European context The Vega Archipelago differs very clearly from other large areas of shallow water in Europe through the occurrence and size of the strandflat and its considerable extents of rocky sea bed,where algae grow profusely,alternating with stretches covered by light-coloured shell sand. The clean water (good visibility),exposed location and strong currents mean that the lushness and diversity of the aquatic environment differ from the other areas, which are much more characterised by a greyish-brown, muddy substrate, poorer visibility and less lushness. The Outer Hebrides,Orkneys and Shetlands,which once had a Nordic population,do have some features in common,having both Nordic nature and Nordic culture. However,a strand- flat topography is absent and,unlike the Vega Archipelago,they lack an outer rim of islets and skerries to shelter them from the ocean and provide extensive,rich fishing grounds on a strandflat where simple vessels may be used. This is a fundamentally different basis and has resulted in a cultural content that has more dissimilarities than similarities. 7 World Heritage Convention - Norwegian Nomination Vegaøyan – The Vega Archipelago 2003-01-17 The Vega Archipelago in a global context Viewed in a global perspective, archipelagos as they are developed in the Nordic region, both marine and brackish-water archipelagos,from the polar tracts in the north to the Baltic Sea in the south, are most definitely a Nordic feature. The type of archipelago formed on what has been termed the strandflat is specially rich in life. The largest and best-developed example is in Helgeland, centred around Vega where the coastal inhabitants have lived off these rich,yet perilous,conditions for a long time. The islands of western Canada, the Caribbean and the Mediterranean have different land forms, natural resources and climatic conditions that have helped to shape cultural land- scapes and traditions which belong to other geo-cultural regions. This is also the case with archipelagos on the coast of Chile, in the Pacific Ocean, the Seychelles and Maldives, Indonesia and New Zealand. The topography of the groups of islands near the Equator and archipelagic landscapes in the Southern Hemisphere differs clearly from the Scandinavian strandflat, which has evolved in a completely different geocultural context. The individual elements in the cultural landscape The cultural landscape of the Vega Archipelago is complex after 10,000 years of continuous interaction between nature and man. A number of features are rare or outstanding in an inter- national context. Together,they explain why this living cultural landscape is of outstanding universal value. Land form The strandflat is a topographical feature that most notably occurs along the west coast of Norway,and in Svalbard and Greenland. One of the best developed areas of strandflat in the world is that containing the Vega Archipelago (Annex 2,nos. 3,16,100). Climate and ocean currents The property clearly illustrates the importance of ocean currents (here the Gulf Stream) for the total diversity of species and for human settlement, life and livelihoods in the northern part of the Northern Hemisphere. Coasts at a comparable latitude (with the partial exception of Iceland) belong in the arctic vegetation zones,where the biodiversity is lower. Geology The property displays a large number of interesting geological features which result in a unique geo-diversity. The Vega Archipelago is situated within one of the key areas for under- standing Caledonian geology. This type of Ordovician granite found here is rare in moun- tain belts and is characterised as a world-class occurrence. Terrestrial and marine flora The combination of the boreal vegetation zone and the highly or markedly oceanic vege- tation sections occurs only on the west coast of North America, the southern tip of Greenland,Iceland and the coast of central and northern Norway. All these areas except the west coast of North America are situated in the Holarctic,the largest floral kingdom in the world. Iceland and the southern tip of Greenland are isolated areas and therefore lack some of the flora found on the Norwegian coast. In the context of global-scale aspects of vege- tation and ecology,and the floral regions,the vegetation of Vega is unique. 8