Yan Yean Water Supply System Conservation Management Plan Volume 1: Executive summary Final May 2007 Prepared for Melbourne Water ii © Context Pty Ltd 2007 All rights reserved; these materials are copyright. No part may be reproduced or copied in any way, form or by any means without permission. Project Team: Context Pty Ltd - David Helms, Natica Schmeder, Chris Johnston, Jackie Donkin & Fae Ingledew Godden Mackay Logan – Tony Brassil Historians – Lesley Alves & Helen Doyle Context Pty Ltd 22 Merri Street, Brunswick 3056 Phone 03 9380 6933 Facsimile 03 9380 4066 Email [email protected] www.context-pl.com.au iii VOLUME 1: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION 7 1.1 Purpose 7 1.2 Study area 7 1.3 Report structure and authorship 7 1.4 Background 8 1.5 Approach and methodology 8 1.6 Scope 9 1.7 Terminology 9 1.8 Acknowledgments 9 2 KEY FINDINGS 11 2.1 Introduction 11 2.2 Historical development 11 2.3 Significance 12 2.3.1 Historic values 12 2.3.2 Indigenous values 12 2.3.3 Natural values 12 2.4 Management framework 12 2.4.1 Melbourne Water 13 2.4.2 Condition 14 2.4.3 Use 14 2.4.4 Policy issues 15 3 RECOMMENDATIONS 17 3.1 Introduction 17 3.2 Key actions 17 3.2.1 Adoption 17 3.2.2 Victorian Heritage Register 17 3.2.3 Interpretation of No.1, No.3 and No.5 mains 17 3.3 Management strategy 17 3.1.1 Operational 18 3.1.2 Non operational (adapt and re-use) 18 3.1.3 Non-operational (No use/artefact) 19 3.4 Other actions 19 3.4.1 High priority 20 3.4.2 Medium priority 21 APPENDIX A 23 Burra Charter definitions 23 APPENDIX B 24 Heritage Council criteria 24 iv APPENDIX C 25 Yan Yean system statement of significance 25 v VOLUME 1: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Figure 1 The Yan Yean system (As reproduced in Dingle & Doyle 2003:34) 6 YAN YEAN WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM CMP 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Purpose This conservation management plan (CMP) for the Yan Yean Water supply system (hereafter referred to as the ‘Yan Yean system’) has been prepared for Melbourne Water by Context Pty Ltd. The purpose of the Yan Yean system CMP is to: • Prepare a historical and physical analysis of the Yan Yean system (based on the published history plus supplementary research). • Assess the natural, historic and Indigenous significance of the Yan Yean system and the relative contribution of its components to its significance. • Develop conservation policies and a management strategy to guide the future conservation, use and development of the Yan Yean system in a manner that minimises impact on its significance. • Prepare, as a priority, an Interpretation Plan to guide the fulfilment of the requirements of the Heritage Victoria consent. The CMP recognises that the Yan Yean system is an important and functioning element of the Melbourne Water network and that the conservation policies will need to carefully balance conserving significance against the need to ensure that the system continues to meet appropriate standards now and into the future. Or, in the words of the NSW Heritage Office: Retaining the value of a heritage asset presents certain constraints and opportunities on development but should not be seen as a block to future development. If heritage significance is fully understood, then works can be proposed that achieve the item’s continuing use, including new development. Adaptation and development may in fact be inspired by and enhance heritage significance, or at least minimise negative impacts. 1.2 Study area For the purposes of this Study, the Yan Yean system is defined as that part of the water supply system extending from the Silver Creek and Wallaby Creek catchments in the north, through to the point where the system crosses Merri Creek in Northcote as shown in Figure 1. 1.3 Report structure and authorship The Yan Yean system CMP comprises six volumes. This volume provides an executive summary of the Yan Yean system CMP including an overview of the methodology (section 1.5) and a summary of the key findings (Chapter 2) and recommendations (Chapter 3). It should be read in conjunction with the other volumes as follows: Volume 2: History Volume 2 provides an explanation of the historic development of the Yan Yean system within the Principal author: Lesley Alves with context of the historic development of assistance from Dr Helen Doyle. Melbourne and its water supply. It takes a thematic approach, drawing on the key themes set out in existing histories of the Yan Yean system, and also looks beyond Victoria to the development of water supply systems in other parts of Australia during the nineteenth century. 7 VOLUME 1: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Volume 3: Heritage assessment Volume 3 provides an assessment of the cultural significance of heritage places associated with the Principal authors: Yan Yean system, and concludes with a David Helms, Natica Schmeder, Tony statement of significance for the whole of the Brassil & Chris Johnston Yan Yean system. Volume 4: Conservation policy The history in Volume 2 and heritage assessment in Volume 3 provides the basis for the Principal authors: conservation policies and management strategies David Helms, Natica Schmeder, Tony in Volume 4. Brassil, Jackie Donkin & Chris Johnston Volume 5: Heritage place and Volume 5 contains place records for all of the precinct citations heritage places associated with the Yan Yean system, which a detailed history, physical Principal authors: description, photographs and statement of David Helms, Natica Schmeder, Tony significance. The place records are derived from Brassil & Fae Ingledew the Melbourne Water Yan Yean system HERMES database. Volume 6: Appendices Volume 6 contains the following reports that provide background or additional information: Yan Yean water supply system CMP & interpretation plan project management plan (March 2006) Context Pty Ltd Indigenous cultural heritage values of the Yan Yean system. Draft report for Context Pty Ltd (November 2005) Heritage Insight Yan Yean water supply system: A review of natural heritage values (December 2005) Ecology Australia Interpretation Plan M57 water main replacement project (2006) Context Pty Ltd. 1.4 Background The significance of the Yan Yean system has been recognised for some time and individual components are already included on the Victorian Heritage Register. The need for a comprehensive assessment of the heritage values of the Yan Yean system arose as the result of the Melbourne Water M57 Water Main project, which included replacement of historic pipe infrastructure in sections of the system. In June 2005 Heritage Victoria issued Consent No. C424 to enable the M57 project to proceed, with a specific condition that Melbourne Water prepare a Conservation Management Plan (CMP) for the whole of the Yan Yean system and also to address the requirement for an interpretation plan for the system. The condition reflected the need for a thorough understanding of the heritage values of the entire Yan Yean system in order to be able to make informed management decisions about any of its components. Construction works on the M57 project commenced in 2003 and was completed in 2006. Melbourne Water appointed Context Pty Ltd in December 2005 to prepare a Conservation Management Plan for the Yan Yean system. 1.5 Approach and methodology This conservation management plan has been prepared in accordance with The Burra Charter: The Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural Significance (1999) and its guidelines. A detailed description of the methodology employed in the preparation of the Yan Yean system CMP is provided in the Project Management Plan, which is one of the background reports included in Volume 6. The following comments provide a summary. 8 YAN YEAN WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM CMP In order to gain a better appreciation of the scope of the Study the first step was to make a preliminary assessment of the places and features associated with the Yan Yean system in order to establish priorities for research and investigation. This included: • An initial site inspection of the whole of the Yan Yean system • ‘Desktop’ reviews of the available archaeological and historical source material related to the Yan Yean system. This preliminary research and investigation was carried out during October and November 2005 and following this the series of tasks set out in the brief were refined. On this basis, the Study included the following key stages, which form the basis of the main volumes in this report: • Stage 1: Assessment of Significance (Volumes 2 and 3) • Stage 2: Developing Policy & Interpretation Plan (Volume 4) • Stage 3: Developing a Management strategy (Volume 4) The Heritage Council of Victoria criteria (refer to Appendix B) have been used in the assessment of significance. In accordance with the Brief, the threshold of State significance has been used as the basis for assessing the significance of the Yan Yean system. 1.6 Scope The Yan Yean system CMP considers all aspects of the historic (non-indigenous) cultural heritage of the place. Preliminary investigation into Indigenous and natural heritage values was carried out as part of the scoping stage for the study and the key findings of each investigation have been captured as an overview statement in Volume 3. Complete copies of the preliminary Indigenous and natural heritage reports are contained in Volume 6. 1.7 Terminology The conservation terminology used in this report is consistent with the defined terms in the Burra Charter 1999. A list of the most frequently used terms is provided in Appendix A. Throughout this report, these terms are used as defined by the Burra Charter and it should be noted that, as a consequence, the meanings of these terms may differ from their common meanings.