Cultural heritage sites
Group operations, as part of the five year communities plan process, are required to have in place a cultural heritage management system (previously referred to as a register of cultural property) to ensure that the protection and enhancement of cultural property is not left to chance. Where custodial communities express sensitivity about identification of cultural sites, appropriate buffer zones, non disclosure or in confidence registration can be accommodated.
The cultural heritage management systems are based on three principles:
- Operations will be designed or sited to prevent damage to non replicable cultural property;
- The development of site registers within the system will be undertaken with the full participation of those community members who attach significance to the cultural property involved; and
- Deviations from the principles will be justified only where social benefits are great and such loss or damage of cultural property is judged by competent authorities to be minor or acceptable.
Although local legislation may vary from country to country, a cultural heritage site is defined as a place, area, structure or remains to which community members ascribe significance. In remote settings this could include natural springs, mountains, archaeological or paleontological sites, while in urban settings, this could include historic buildings, pioneer graves or a place of particular aesthetic significance. In essence, cultural heritage symbolises what people believe is important to them.
Management procedures in the system include consultation and engagement with communities, the management of information about cultural heritage sites, legal requirements, ongoing monitoring, and mechanisms to ensure that day to day operational activities do not inadvertently impact on known sites of importance.
It is our goal that the cultural heritage management systems are incorporated into the businesses' management systems, so that all cultural heritage work is done in a timely and appropriate manner, not as a reactive response to legal requirements. For example, see 'Protecting Aboriginal sites in the Pilbara'.
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