Heritage faces growing weather threat

The situation is mirrored elsewhere. According to Du, many other sites around the Tarim Basin face similar threats brought about by climate change, and some are even more vulnerable than Subashi. As a result, he urges a plan for their overall protection.

Alexander J. Kent, a member of the World Monuments Fund Britain, shares the influence of climate change on coastal heritage sites, and urges more cooperation in the field.

He says that a storm had led to the partial collapse of Hurst Castle, a 16th-century coastal fortress located on a shingle spit directly facing the full force of the wind and waves in the southern English county of Hampshire.

In February 2021, a section of the wall in the 19th-century east wing of the castle suddenly collapsed after a storm, as the sea had exposed and undercut its foundations.

"Climate change and rising sea levels threaten to further undercut the castle and could lead to further loss," Kent says, adding that while an emergency engineering response has bought time, the long-term future of the castle remains uncertain.

He explains that rising sea levels, increased coastal erosion, storms and precipitation caused by climate change can make it very difficult to find long-term sustainable solutions to protect these sites.

Kent now leads Coastal Connections, an initiative to form a network to share expertise and practice in addressing the influence of climate change on coastal heritage sites around the world.

"Statistics show that 17 percent of UNESCO World Heritage Sites are located within 5 kilometers of a coastline, so it's a common challenge that faces us all," he says.

He adds that in some parts of Tanzania, planting mangrove forests has been successful in slowing the rate of coastal erosion and that this approach could work elsewhere, and urges the increased exchange of ideas and cooperation on the issue, as well as the use of more technological tools in its study.

The forum was launched last year in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage in 1972, and was held online. The November event is its first face-to-face meeting.