The Urban Regulation Project for Luang Prabang occured in 1993-94, controled by The Institute for Urban Technical Study, Ministry of communication, transportation, post and Construction in cooperation with the Urban Project Managing Assistance UNCHS, within the support of UNDP. This Project was completed in 1995, and was not until the end of August 24^th 1996 that the Urban Regulation for Luang Prabang was approved by the Prime Minister Cabinet Office.

In this document has limit the cultural protection area, the urban landscape, and the natural landscape surrounding the town.

Map No 1: shows the whole area which are controled by the Urban Regulation for Luang Prabang.

Map No. 2: shows the limit of each different land use. In the urban landscape includes many different land use, each of them have more or less different regulation and are divided in 3 main zones:

1. Protection Zone (ZPP cover an are of 860 ha):

ZPP-Ua: Ancient town, with a strict Urban Regulation, in order to preserve its heritage and the esthetic of the site.

ZPP-Ub: Historical part of the town, is also protected but with a more light Urban Regulation, in order to keep the town develop.

ZPP-N: Natural zone for protection.

2. Urban zone (cover an area of 1,314 ha):

Uc: Habitation surrounding the Protection area.

Ud: Habitation along the river bank.

A: Land use for economic purpose.

3. Natural zone (cover an area of 7,314 ha):

Na: For new development in the future.

Nc: For agriculture, Forestry and rivers.

Map No 3: shows the protection zone (ZPP-Ua, ZPP-Ub and ZPP-N).

To connect between the urban planning and the conservation work, the Ministry of Information and Culture set up a project of "Inventory of the Historical Monument of Luang Prabang ", in 1994 supported by the French Embassy, it was a cooperation work between the Department of Museums and Archaeology and the consultant company Atelier de la Peninsule.

The aim of this project was:

1. To reply to Unesco's agreement, in order to apply the Town of Luang Prabang in the world's heritage list.
   

2. To prevent the demolition of old houses and monuments in the historical city within a fast growing period of the tourist development and new construction technology and urban infrastructure.
   

3. To select the old traditional monument and houses, in order to preserve it. Therefor to control the conservation work, this Inventory of the Historical Monument of Luang Prabang was using in conjoining to the Urban Regulation for Luang Prabang especially for the Protection Zone.

The result was:

1. Have been able to divide monuments and houses out into 7 typology,
   

   according to their history: a) Lao traditional house made of wood, b) Lao traditional house made of wood and mix, c) Administration Building, d) Lao traditional house made of brick and wood, e ) Lao traditional house made of brick and mix, f) Compartment houses and g) Lao colonial houses.
   

2. Have been able to select and listed on the Inventory of the historical Monument of Luang Prabang Document, altogether 34 Vats (Buddhism temple) and 111 civil building.
   

The essential Historical and religious monuments of Luang Prabang were listed in the Protection Zone (ZPP) which was completed by the Institute for Urban Technical Study (IETU), Ministry of communication, transportation, post and Construction(MCTPC) and the Department of Museums and Archaeology (DMA), the Ministry of Information and Culture (MIC) at the end of 1994 as a draft document.

September 1994 The Service of communication, transportation, post and Construction of Luang Prabang Province was in charge of delivering the construction permits by using the Urban Regulation for Luang Prabang document to controle.

It was then only after December 1995, when Luang Prabang was in the world's Heritage List, that a big preservation program was set by UNESCO. UNESCO has connected Luang Prabang to be a twin town with Chinon (one of' the French's world Heritage Site). Therefore a Decentralize Project between the Town of Chinon and The Town of Luang Prabang was created and approved on August 3^rd 1996.

• The site: It is a remarkable place which includes all together the civils and religious Monuments, an ancient urban landscape of mix Lao traditional and French influence architecture and a natural landscape surrounding and integrating in the town.
  

• The build heritage: It is composed of numerous and important religious compound which has specific local architecture style, ancient administration buildings, wooden and mix wooden with torchis compartments house along the roads.
  

• The natural landscape: The urban town is mostly covered by trees plantation and some humidity green zones. Comparing to the whole natural landscape, the town seems to be just like a small spot in the middle of a huge plantation screen. It is composed of green surface of forestry, mountain and humidity zones.
  

• to maintain the ancient construction which might suffer from human demolition and modification, in order to be able to adapt a permission control.
  

• to maintain the constructed urban landscape, in order to be able to control the new construction to integrate with the ancient town.
  

• to maintain the natural landscape, in order to be able to control the trees and forest cutting and new soil covering into the natural ponds.

This Project will last 3 years, to help the local authorities build up a strong background of human resources and regulations, in order to be able to direct their own preservation work and by following a complete conservation management planing.

To Preserve the whole town, happened to be not easy at all. Especially when its a town that is still alive and people need to live and develop their own way of living. Also, it is a small town untouched by the modern world, which has a population that had never known the sense and knowledge on conservation and preservation matters, especially how to preserve a world heritage site. Therefor it was essential to have a special authority responsible to control and deal with preservation and management plan management plans.

The Heritage House (Maison du Patrimoine)

This Heritage House was officially opened on September 1996, after Luang Prabang was listed in the World's Heritage List on December 1995 and under the Decentralize Project between the Town of Chinon and The Town of Luang Prabang.

Its mission is to:

1. Give information and advise local population such as organizing exhibitions, seminars, consult regularly the local people about conservation and restoration work and making reference manuels.
   

2. Consult on Urban regulation by:
   
   - consult and advice on the construction permit, concerning the conservation, restoration and the esthetic of the Heritage town.
   

   - draft regulations to submit and to be approved as law:
   

   - preservation and conservation law.
   

   - make a Master Plan "Plan de Sauvegarde et de Mise en Valeur pour la ville de Luang Prabang".
   

3. Urban operation the Heritage House assist on:
   
   - giving International Fund to help the poor population in conserving and preserving their house by making an analyzing program of the Socio-Economic Level of the population in town..
   

   - implementing the urban management, by cooperating with others government authorities.
   

The Heritage House main activities to be complete within the period of 3 years' of the project are:

1. Review the "Inventory of the ancient Monument of Luang Prabang ", made in 1994, by making a more complete document and by adjusting more traditional wooden house in the list, in order to control them easier.
   

2. Make the Master Plan "Plan de Sauvegarde et de Mise en Valeur pour la ville de Luang Prabang" by using as a base reference the "Urban Regulation for Luang Prabang", in order to connect and make it follow the conservation line.
   
   1. General urban study of the town landscape:
      

      Include historical research with maps showing the urban evaluation in each period of the town, study on the urban infrastructure and public spaces;
      

      proposal for each zones concerning to conserve, restore their identity and some possibilities of partial demolition or modification.
      

3. Make a research ecologist program, to evaluate and preserve the Humid Area (lakes and ponds).
   

4. Make a research program of the local population's socio-economic level, in order to be able to plan and control the using of The International Helping Fund.
   

5. Training private local agencies for construction, architects and workers, to know and learn about conservation and restoration methodology, and especially to preserve Lao traditional materials and construction technical.
   

6. Restoration of 2 different old houses in the town, to be a sample of how to restore a house that will nearly fall down instead of demolishing it, and how to reorganized and make new design for new using propose.

The Conservation Management Plan for Luang Prabang will serve to control the future structure of its Urban Landscape and the Natural Environment, which all government and local authorities had to determine, approve and use this control line, in order to assure all the population of Luang Prabang to be able to live in a World's Heritage Site by conserving its characteristic charm.

The town has an architecture and heritage construction, the potential for development of tourism industry, of the commercials activities, therefor our Government will had to make more effort in ensuring the role of conservation by assuming responsibility for all development and preservation programs.

To achieve this, we still need the support of both National and International authorities concerned who understand and evaluate the exceptional universal value of a cultural and Natural site which deserves protection for the benefit of all Humanity.

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