Committee activities (inquiries and reports)

Managing Australia's World Heritage

On 4 November 1996, the Committee tabled its report Managing Australia's World Heritage. A HTML version of the report is available. Certain modifications have been made to the organisation of the report and some figures have not been reproduced.

CONTENTS

TERMS OF REFERENCE

MEMBERSHIP OF THE COMMITTEE

PREFACE

ABBREVIATIONS

SUMMARY

RECOMMENDATIONS

CHAPTER 1: AN INTRODUCTION TO WORLD HERITAGE IN AUSTRALIA

• What is world heritage?
  • Administration of the World Heritage Convention
  • The world heritage listing process
• World heritage in Australia
  • Details of Australian properties
  • Australia's world heritage properties in the context of other protected areas
• Why the inquiry was carried out
• Conduct of the inquiry

CHAPTER 2: THE WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION AND THE COMMONWEALTH'S RESPONSIBILITIES

• Introduction
• The World Heritage Convention
  • Obligations created by the Convention
  • The nature of the obligations and duties created by the Convention
• The Convention and national sovereignty
• The powers of the Commonwealth Government and the Commonwealth Parliament
• The Convention and the management of world heritage in Australia
• Conclusion

CHAPTER 3: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION—LEGAL REGIMES

• Introduction
  • The focus of protection—world heritage values or inscribed areas
  • The scope of valid Commonwealth legislation
• The legal and administrative arrangements
  • Commonwealth Legislation
    • World Heritage Properties Conservation Act
    • The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act
    • Other Commonwealth legislation
• Joint Commonwealth/State Regimes
  • The application of State legislation in world heritage areas
  • The Intergovernmental Agreement on the Environment
• Conclusion

CHAPTER 4: MANAGEMENT OF WORLD HERITAGE AREAS

• Commonwealth and State responsibilities
• Management structures
  • Commonwealth management arrangements
  • Consistent management structures and the 'DEST model'
  • Existing management structures
  • Comments on the operation of the management arrangements
    • Commonwealth administration of Northern Territory world heritage areas
    • The World Heritage Unit
    • Ministerial Councils
    • Involving the community
    • Conclusion
    • Boards of management
    • Involving indigenous people
    • Involving the tourism industry
• Management plans
  • World heritage area management plans
  • Regional and strategic plans
  • Comments on progress with planning
  • Ingredients for effective management planning
• World heritage values
  • Defining values
  • Updating values
• Related issues: boundaries and non-indigenous historical remains
• Protecting values
  • Protection from impacts within
  • Conclusion
  • Protection from impacts outside the world heritage area
  • Conclusion
• Research needs
• Standards for management
• Permitting multiple use of world heritage areas and adjacent areas
• Management agreements
• The private sector's role
• Best practice in management

CHAPTER 5: MONITORING AND REPORTING

• Monitoring and reporting requirements
• Monitoring Australian world heritage properties
• Guidelines for monitoring and reporting

CHAPTER 6: PRESENTATION AND EDUCATION

• The obligation to present world heritage areas
  • Responsibility for presenting world heritage areas
  • Presentation versus protection
• Education about world heritage
  • Awareness of world heritage
  • Educating about indigenous values
• The presenters and educators
  • Volunteers as presenters and educators
• Presentation and education techniques
  • Signage and the world heritage emblem
  • Publications
  • Information centres

CHAPTER 7: GOVERNMENT FUNDING OF WORLD HERITAGE AREAS

• Introduction
• The Commonwealth's responsibilities for funding
• Shared funding responsibilities between the Commonwealth and States
  • Principles
  • Funding agreements
  • A model funding agreement
  • Alternatives to agreements
• Adequacy of funding
  • Commonwealth managed world heritage areas—Uluru-Kata Tjuta and Kakadu
  • Great Barrier Reef
  • Queensland's world heritage areas
    • The Wet Tropics
    • Fraser Island
    • Riversleigh Fossil Site
    • Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves
  • Tasmania—The Tasmanian Wilderness world heritage area
  • New South Wales world heritage areas
    • Willandra Lakes
    • Lord Howe Island
    • Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves
  • South Australia—Naracoorte Fossil Caves world heritage site
  • Western Australia—Shark Bay world heritage area
• The need for additional Commonwealth funding
• Other funding issues
  • Regional issues
  • Compensation
  • Use of world heritage funds for non-world heritage purposes

CHAPTER 8: COST RECOVERY AND OTHER FUNDING SOURCES

• Cost recovery
  • The advantages and disadvantages of cost recovery
  • Principles in cost recovery
  • How far is it reasonable and possible to pursue cost recovery?
  • Uses of cost recovered funds
  • Cost recovery options
  • Experience with cost recovery
• Other sources of funds
  • Volunteers
  • Sponsorship
  • Private sector operations associated with world heritage areas

APPENDIX A—PROPERTIES INCLUDED IN THE WORLD HERITAGE LIST AS OF DECEMBER 1995
APPENDIX B—PROPERTIES ON THE LIST OF WORLD HERITAGE IN DANGER AS OF JANUARY 1996
APPENDIX C—WORLD HERITAGE CRITERIA
APPENDIX D—INDEX OF SUBMISSIONS AND EXHIBITS

• Submissions
• Exhibits

APPENDIX E—PUBLIC HEARINGS, INSPECTIONS AND DISCUSSIONS

• Witnesses at public hearings
• Inspections and discussions

APPENDIX F—ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURES IN AUSTRALIA'S WORLD HERITAGE AREAS
APPENDIX G—INFORMATION CENTRES IN WORLD HERITAGE AREAS

 

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