Managing National Heritage places

To ensure the on-going protection of a National Heritage place, a management plan should be prepared that sets out how the heritage values of the site will be protected or conserved.

Plans need to be consistent with the National Heritage management principles. Where a National Heritage place is in a state or territory, the Australian Government must endeavour to ensure that a management plan is prepared and implemented in cooperation with the relevant state or territory government.

The Minister for the Environment (the Minister) is responsible for preparing management plans for National Heritage places in Commonwealth areas. Plans are required to be reviewed every five years.

Heritage management principles

The National Heritage management principles provide a guiding framework for excellence in managing heritage properties. They set the standard and the scope of the way places should be managed in order to protect heritage values for future generations.

These principles should be used when preparing and implementing management plans and programmes. In the absence of a management plan, they should guide the management of heritage values of a property.

National Heritage management principles

  1. The objective in managing National Heritage places is to identify, protect, conserve, present and transmit, to all generations, their National Heritage values.
  2. The management of National Heritage places should use the best available knowledge, skills and standards for those places, and include ongoing technical and community input to decisions and actions that may have a significant impact on their National Heritage values.
  3. The management of National Heritage places should respect all heritage values and seek to integrate, where appropriate, any Commonwealth, state, territory and local government responsibilities for those places.
  4. The management of National Heritage places should ensure that their use and presentation is consistent with the conservation of their National Heritage values.
  5. The management of National Heritage places should make timely and appropriate provision for community involvement, especially by people who:
    1. have a particular interest in, or associations with, the place, and
    2. may be affected by the management of the place.
  6. Indigenous people are the primary source of information on the value of their heritage and the active participation of Indigenous people in identification, assessment and management is integral to the effective protection of Indigenous heritage values.
  7. The management of National Heritage places should provide for regular monitoring, review and reporting on the conservation of National Heritage values.