A management perspective on threats to Cultural World Heritage Sites

This study examines factors associated with threats to Cultural World Heritage Sites as perceived by their management. Employed for the analysis are data on 396 UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Sites in North America and Europe as well as 2158 threats identified by the UNESCO Second Cycle of Periodic Reporting for Europe and North America in 2014. One out of seven sites report that there are no threats at all and 2.5% do not provide information on the threats. Probit models show that sites inscribed early, those considered as "masterpieces" and sites located in certain countries are more likely to report a threat. Ordered Probit estimations, including three levels of threats (negligible, minor and major), reveal that the degree of threat perception is highest for entire cultural cities and cultural landscapes. The severity also varies by kind of threat and country of location. Climate change and severe weather as well as sudden geological events have the highest probability of being perceived as major threats. The third group of the most frequently mentioned major threats encompasses factors including local conditions affecting the physical fabric, social/cultural use of the heritage (tourism/visitors/recreation) as well as buildings and development.