Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, the PMA came under scrutiny due to area construction, and was under the threat of being placed on the World Heritage in Danger list. The conditions, the World Heritage Committee (WHC) stated, were to conduct a Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) study, and address the problem of invasive species within the PMA.

Minister for Sustainable Development, Hon. Dr. James Fletcher was part of the team that worked tirelessly to ensure that the threat of danger listing was removed.

Speaking at the ceremony, the minister said: “Our PMA became a member of the very celebrated list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2004. I think sometimes we underestimate this. This means that the people of Saint Lucia have been given a responsibility to preserve this landmark for ourselves and the rest of the world to enjoy.

“This is why I had the very difficult task to go to St. Petersburg, Russia to convince the members of the WHC that our Pitons were not in danger,” he continued. “I had to convince them that we had not done anything that justified our Pitons being placed on the sinister list of World Heritage in Danger. At that meeting I was given two minutes to explain why our Pitons should not be placed on the danger list. That was the most difficult two minutes of my life and the discussion that ensued was one of the most stressful and nail-biting I’ve ever experienced.”

The LAC was completed last year and presented to the WHC at the 38th session in Doha, Qatar. It concluded that the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the Pitons had not been compromised.

“When we read that study we all breathed a sigh of relief,” Dr. Fletcher said. “So today really is a culmination of two notable events: removal from the threat of danger listing, and our 10th Anniversary as a World Heritage Site.”

Marcia Symphorien, Secretary General for the Saint Lucia National Commission for UNESCO extended sincere congratulations to the Government and People of Saint Lucia.

“Inscription on the World Heritage List is both an honor and a privilege,” she said. “It is only a few of the world’s best sites which meet the requirements of “outstanding universal value” and Saint Lucia has risen to the occasion.

“The WHC decided that on the basis of its geological features and superb natural beauty, the PMA was worthy of World Heritage Status, and as such, Saint Lucia joined other world-famous sites such as the birthplace of Jesus in Bethlehem, the pyramids of Egypt, Venice and its lagoons, the Great Barrier Reefs in Australia. Of the 1007 World Heritage Sites worldwide, the English-speaking Caribbean boasts only four. Saint Lucia’s PMA is one.

She continued: “Saint Lucia must live up to the challenges, which come with such colossal responsibility. The site must be managed to the highest level, ensuring the protection and preservation of its natural environment.”

According to the Official Statement of Inscription, the WHC inscribed the PMA on the basis of it being an “outstanding example representing major stages of earth history,” and a “superlative natural phenomena or area of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance.”

Minister for Social Transformation and representative for Soufriere, Hon. Harold Dalson, promised that government will continue to maintain the integrity of the PMA.

The PMA was inscribed on June 30, 2004. The threat of danger listing was removed on June 18, 2014. The 10th Anniversary celebration was held on June 27, 2014, in Soufriere.