PARIS— The UNESCO World Heritage Committee approved several decisions today aligned with longstanding Center for Biological Diversity petitions to protect some of the planet’s most imperiled natural treasures.

The actions cover the critically endangered vaquita’s Gulf of California habitat in Mexico, the iconic and wildlife-rich Galápagos Islands, the world’s largest tropical wetland in South America, and a biodiverse reserve in Sonora, Mexico, threatened by the U.S. border wall.

“These votes are a wake-up call to the world that we need bold, immediate action to save these treasured sites,” said Alejandro Olivera, Mexico representative at the Center, who is attending the meeting in Paris. “The world’s most iconic species need protections now, from the last few vaquitas clinging to survival in the Gulf of California to monarchs searching for shrinking winter forests. UNESCO has drawn the roadmap and now governments must supply the political will, resources and enforcement to turn these decisions into life-saving reality. Once these species and spectacular places are lost, they’re gone for good.”

The decisions include:

Gulf of California, Mexico: The Committee retained the biodiversity hotspot on the List of World Heritage in Danger to protect vaquitas from extinction. It instructed Mexico to deploy functional vessel‑monitoring systems, enlarge the vaquita “zero tolerance area,” and replace all gillnets, after a May 2024 survey found only six to eight of the porpoises remaining.

Monarch Butterfly Reserve, Mexico: The iconic monarchs faced the second-worst overwintering season on record in 2025 — the butterflies occupied just 0.9 hectares of forest, which was 59% less than 2024. The Committee pressed Mexico to enlarge protected boundaries, finish an overdue management plan and curb illegal logging and avocado expansion.

El Pinacate, Mexico-U.S. Border: Citing the U.S. border wall’s “clear negative impacts” on wildlife movement, the Committee demanded that Mexico and the United States produce, an “urgent” action plan, that includes wall modifications or removals, wildlife corridors. It also directed the World Heritage Centre and the International Union for Conservation of Nature to accelerate a long-delayed mission and warned that failure to restore wildlife connectivity by 2026 will trigger an “in danger” designation.

Galapagos Islands, Ecuador: Warning that the Galapagos archipelago is approaching a tipping point, delegates decried overtourism, escalating plastic pollution and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing by industrial fleets operating just beyond park limits. They called for an immediate cap on visitors, a control on new tourism infrastructure and tougher maritime patrols and satellite surveillance to combat illicit fishing.

Pantanal Conservation Area, Brazil, Bolivia and Paraguay: Alarmed that more than one-third of the Pantanal wetland burned during the worst drought in 75 years, with 95% of fires human‑caused, the Committee ordered an urgent assessment of cumulative wildfire damage. It also expressed grave concern over a proposed commercial waterway on the Paraguay River that would increase freight traffic and port construction upstream.

The Center’s petitions and technical submissions to UNESCO, most recently in 2023 and 2024, urged keeping the Gulf of California on the “in danger” list, an emergency “connectivity restoration” plan for Pinacate, and stronger protective boundaries and enforcement tools for the Pantanal and Galapagos Islands, among other measures.

Today’s decisions adopt recommendations and set new, time-bound reporting deadlines to ensure accountability.

The decisions were made at the committee’s 47th session held in Paris, France.