What is heritage value?

The term 'heritage values' means all the aspects of a place that give it special meaning or make it important to the community. The EPBC Act creates different levels of management for different levels of heritage values. These levels of heritage value are established by applying heritage criteria and thresholds and these are different for the various levels of listing:

The EPBC Act protects all kinds of heritage values from impacts that might damage or destroy those values.

How is heritage protected?

Heritage is protected through legislation and through a management system that implements the legislation. Australia has a federal heritage management regime which was introduced in December 2003.
An important part of heritage management is the identification and listing of valued places and items. Defence has a well established Heritage Register in which we have compiled all Defence owned and controlled places which are listed on federal lists.

Does Defence own or control many heritage places?

Currently Defence has approximately 62 properties that contain approximately 120 places on the Commonwealth Heritage List, (ie some of these properties have multiple buildings which are individually listed on the Commonwealth Heritage List) and some Defence training areas and properties are on the National Heritage List (NHL) and in or adjacent to World Heritage Listed sites.  Go to the Defence Heritage Register to access the current list of Defence heritage places.

Who do I contact for more info on a Defence heritage place?

You can contact the Defence Heritage Management section in the Defence Support Group for assistance with managing heritage places. You may also need to contact local Defence staff or the heritage agencies of the various states and territories. For a comprehensive listing of contacts click here.

What is the Defence Heritage Toolkit?

The Defence Heritage Toolkit is a practical guide to managing the heritage of places owned by Defence, or at locations where defence activities take place.

The Toolkit is intended for use by all Defence personnel. The toolkit is now being radically overhauled to make it even more user friendly and to bring it into line with new heritage legislation. Click here to access the existing version of the Toolkit.

What is a management plan for a heritage place?

The EPBC Act requires that sites listed on the NHL or CHL must be managed according to a management plan written specially for the place. A heritage management plan must identify the heritage values of the place and outline the policies and principles that will govern the management of the place's heritage values. It should also provide specific guidance on the maintenance and upkeep of the heritage place, including maintenance schedules and priorities.

Defence has several management plans in place for our sites, and aims to improve the standard of these documents continuously to ensure that they make a real difference to management on the ground.

What is a referral and do I need one?

One of the ways the EPBC Act protects heritage is through setting out a process to control 'significant' or 'adverse' impacts on heritage values. The Act controls adverse impacts on places on the CHL, while any other heritage values are also protected from 'significant' impacts by the need to refer these actions under ss26/28. This is a 'referral'.

The process is reasonably complex because it aims to be comprehensive, though a referral will only be needed when there is no alternative to causing a significant impact on heritage values. You will need expert advice on this matter, go to our Contacts page for further advice.