Our Heritage
Historic water tank
Cross cultural training promotes sound heritage management
While most people are aware of Melbourne Water's role in providing water, sewerage and drainage services, very few know about our cultural heritage management role.
We are responsible for managing a large number of places and objects, which we mainly inherited from our predecessor, the Melbourne and Metropolitan Board of Works (the Board).
The Board was established in 1891. It played a significant role in the development of Melbourne by building a huge water supply network and drainage and sewerage facilities that still serve Melbourne today.
We now have more than 20 places and assets listed on the Victorian Heritage Register, with a number of sites yet to be assessed.
We also manage rivers and creeks in the Port Phillip and Westernport region. Aboriginal groups lived along rivers and creeks well before the arrival of European settlers. They continue to be places of cultural significance for Aboriginal people - as birthplaces, burial sites and places of ceremony. Our aim is to manage Aboriginal cultural heritage as a key part of overall river health.
In order to fulfil our responsibilities and set in place a coordinated approach to cultural heritage management we have developed a Cultural Heritage Strategy (PDF, 3.9mb).
The Strategy aims to:
- Set our heritage management direction
- Provide a clear basis for determining whether heritage values might be affected by any project or works
- Explain how we will manage all cultural heritage matters in a consistent way.
What is heritage?
"Heritage" can include both the tangible and intangible.
Some different types of "heritage" include:
Outlet tower, Maroondah Reservoir
Scar tree
Non-indigenous heritage (Built/European)
Includes places and objects built in the years of Melbourne's European settlement including buildings, monuments, gardens, industrial sites, designed landscapes and archaeological sites. These places tell us about social changes, technical and creative achievements, and provide a tangible link to past events, processes and people.
Indigenous heritage
Includes all places that were occupied by Aboriginal communities in the past and those that are part of Aboriginal peoples' spiritual links to the land or which tell the story of indigenous peoples throughout history. i.e. sacred sites, ceremonial sites, fish traps, burials, scarred trees, camp sites and settlements.
Natural heritage
This includes sites and places of environmental importance. Although outside the scope of our Cultural Heritage Strategy, we have long considered the protection of natural values in all our works and have set mechanisms in place to ensure protection of the environment.
Partners
To carry out this Strategy we are working with the community and other heritage managers, including:
Melbourne Water wishes to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land on which we operate, the Kulin Nations and the Gunai/Kurnai people, and their elders past and present.
- Heritage Victoria
- Aboriginal Affairs Victoria
- Registered Aboriginal Parties
- Local Government
- Traditional owners in the Kulin Nation: including Dja Dja Wrung, Woiwurrung, Taungerong, Boonerwrung and Wathaurong as well as the Gunai/Kurnai people
Downloads
You will need Adobe Acrobat to access the above PDF documents. 