From the construction of Australia’s first large-scale hydropower scheme in the early 1900s, we’ve been shaping communities. We manage the heritage values of our assets and heritage places which tell important stories about the people and practices underpinning our industry and vision.
We have played an important role in developing Tasmania’s industries and communities over more than a century. Today we are responsible for managing the landscapes, places and objects that help us tell our story, maintain our identity and inform our future.
Our heritage showcases and celebrates Tasmanian innovation and practicality and is important to the Tasmanian community. Conserving our heritage keeps us connected to the people and communities who worked to build what we have today. It also recognises that the land and water assets we manage have ancient traditions and ongoing importance to Aboriginal Tasmanians.
We acknowledge and respect the places under our custodianship that are important to Aboriginal Tasmanians. We work with the Aboriginal community to ensure this heritage is protected.
We manage many areas and sites of heritage significance to the Aboriginal community. Aboriginal people (Palawa) have lived in Tasmania for many thousands of years, knowing and caring for country, and creating places and objects that are culturally and spiritually significant for past and present Aboriginal communities. The mountains, marshes, natural lakes and rivers that capture and channel water for hydro power are rich in Aboriginal history and tradition. The forests and grasslands were shaped to create living space and hunting grounds. Places containing rock-shelters and artefact scatters remind us of the countless generations of Palawa that came before us.
We are committed to working with land owners, land managers and Aboriginal communities to record, protect and manage these landscapes, places and objects in accordance with the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1975. The Act, administered by Aboriginal Heritage Tasmania, requires those conducting activities in areas of significance to take all reasonable and practical measures to avoid harming cultural heritage.
We aim to work with the Aboriginal community, recognising the importance of supporting community empowerment and capacity for managing heritage.
We manage many places and objects of historic heritage significance, which tell us about the cultural values and industrial developments of their time. We take responsibility to maintain and protect our operating assets, and to document and conserve heritage values both during and after their operational life.
Our heritage management is in accordance with the Burra Charter 2013, nationally recognised guidelines for heritage conservation practice. In Tasmania, historic cultural heritage is primarily managed through the Historic Cultural Heritage Act 1995, which protects all places and areas entered in the Tasmanian Heritage Register.
We are responsible for two heritage-registered places: the Lake Margaret Power Scheme including the oldest operating power station in Australia; and the Great Lake Power Scheme including Waddamana Power Station Heritage Site, representing the first large-scale power development in the southern hemisphere.
We work closely with our partners at Heritage Tasmania and with the community to protect and interpret our heritage-listed assets, and to identify and conserve other significant historic heritage places and objects on land we manage. We promote sustainable use and sensitive development so these places can be used and enjoyed now and for future generations.
Heritage Management and Conservation Documents