Într-o scrisoare adresată prim-ministrului României, Emil Boc, organizaţia Europa Nostra cere guvernului român să asigure cel mai înalt nivel de protejare a patrimoniului cultural şi natural unic de la Roşia Montană.

The Hague, 20 April 2011

H.E. Mr Emil Boc

Prime Minister of Romania

1 Victoriei Plazza, District 1

Bucharest, ROMANIA

Your Excellency,

I write to you on behalf of Europa Nostra, the pan-European federation of heritage organisations which has close working relationships with the European Union, the Council of Europe and UNESCO, to encourage the Romanian Government to ensure the highest level of protection of the unique cultural and natural heritage of the Rosia Montana area.

Europa Nostra has been carefully considering - as we know your government has too - the effects on Rosia Montana's heritage, environment and community of the proposed large-scale open-cast gold mining project. We recently arranged a public hearing in Brussels, and have listened extensively to the views expressed by interested parties and both Romanian and international experts. Experts are agreed that Rosia Montana has an outstanding heritage value, not only for Romania, but for the whole of Europe. We are sure that your government will therefore wish to safeguard this heritage for present and future generations, and to promote a sustainable long-term development strategy which will provide a viable future for the community living in the area. We are aware that the Joint Standing Committee of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies and the Senate for the relation with UNESCO called for Rosia Montana to be included in the Tentative List of World Heritage Sites and that this view has been supported by the Romanian National Commission on Historic Monuments as well as by the Romanian Academy and ICOMOS International.

We recommend that, in order that the significance of the site can be assessed objectively by the world expert body for cultural heritage, Mr Keleman Hunor, Romanian Minister of Culture, formally includes Rosia Montana in the Tentative List and forwards this proposal to UNESCO in time to be considered by this year's meeting of the World Heritage Committee in Paris in June. While waiting for the decision on the future of Rosia Montana to be taken by the Romanian government, some archaeological sites excavated more than 4 years ago are vulnerable to deterioration and need urgent protection. We therefore ask your government to take immediate measures to protect these sites from this danger and to ensure that the highest level of legal protection of the listed monuments and sites in Rosia Montana is maintained.

Given the significance of the cultural and natural heritage of Rosia Montana it is of vital importance that any development provides for its sustainability. This should include:

- dealing with existing pollution and degradation,

- ensuring a long term protection of the cultural heritage and the natural environment,

- taking into account the tourism potential of the region, and

- providing for the well-being of present and future inhabitants of the area.

It is indeed the responsibility of your government to insure that the development strategy chosen meets these challenges, and that the necessary fundings and controls are being provided. Europa Nostra would be happy to assist you in finding the necessary expertise to help ensure the sustainable future of this unique cultural and natural heritage if you consider that such assistance would be helpful.

Please note that copies of this letter will be sent to your Minister of Culture, Mr Keleman Hunor, to your Minister of Environment, Mr Borbely Laszlo and to your Minister of Regional Development and Tourism, Ms Elena Udrea. I am also copying this letter, for their information, to Mrs Androulla Vassiliou, European Commissioner responsible for Culture, to Mr Janez Potočnik, European Commissioner responsible for Environment and to Mr Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner responsible for Regional Development as well as to the Chairpersons of the EP Committee on Culture and Education (Mrs Doris Pack) and the EP Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (Mr Jo Leinen). Copies of this letter will also be sent to Mr Thorbjorn Jagland, Secretary General of the Council of Europe and also to Mrs Irina Bokova, Director General of UNESCO.

Yours sincerely,

Denis de Kergorlay Executive President