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H@R! : Heritage at Risk |
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As is broadly dealt with in the ICOMOS Charter of Historic Towns and Urban Areas (adopted in 1987 in Washington), there are many threats against historic urban fabric, amongst them being: forced urbanisation, development of traffic systems without taking the existing city design into account, uncontrolled suburban sprawl, destroying the city outskirts and the skyline, spoiling the surrounding countryside, etc.
The risks on one hand are identical throughout the world, but on the other, there are "specialities" according to different regions. If we look at the European region, the risk almost always resides in urban development projects (such as the Aaltmarkt at Leiden, the problem of the Tour-et-Taxis complex in Belgium, and others).
Currently, in Central and Eastern Europe, there is a type of speculation which is present in the centres of the historic towns, followed by façadism in the large metropolitan cities. The necessary development of infrastructure is equally causing problems, mostly about underground parking and other features serving traffic. In the same region the change (at times the restitution) of owners is leading to a loss of traditional function in urban quarters, but above all in the villages. The accelerated transformation to an urban look of villages in the region has reached a critical point in some places - linked with the occurrence of the above mentioned spread of the suburbs.
Other dangers stem from social movement and mobility. The de-population of historic towns and villages (see the situation in Transylvania, Romania, where the German community left their small towns / villages for politico-economic reasons, and their remarkable heritage is currently in a more than difficult state...But the process is known in other countries in this region, although the measures are not as dramatic.)
In other regions, especially in Latin America and certain Asian countries (for example in China), the problem has started (and is continuously present!), of over-population, and the extreme concentration of inhabitants that overload historic towns and the proposed solutions often do not count as sufficient for the preservation and conservation of cultural heritage places and for historic quarters.
We must not forget the effects of mass tourism that demand services too near to the historic values, for example the Properties that appear on the World Heritage List (for example, Hollóko, Hungary, Vlkolinec, Slovakia) where the emerging problems from the considerable number of visitors are being mastered with great difficulty.
To conclude, natural catastrophes - earthquakes, floods, fire - are equally risk factors in historic towns and villages. Preparedness against them and also "prefabricated" programmes, adapted for and from outside the situation itself, represent a considerable duty for all experts and managers in this important and complex area.
The Washington Charter 1987, The Charter on the Conservation of Historic Towns and Urban Areas:
http://www.international.icomos.org/e_towns.htm
ICOMOS International Scientific Committee on Historic Towns and Villages (CIVVIH)