Kingston and Arthur’s Vale Historic Area Advisory Committee March 2023 Meeting Communiqué

The Advisory Committee for the Kingston and Arthur’s Vale Historic Area met on 27 March to discuss a range of issues concerning site management and governance.

Following earlier community consultations, the Committee reviewed and provided feedback on the 2023 Heritage Management Plan (HMP) for Kingston, which will now proceed to its statutory approval process. This includes a public exhibition period before it is submitted to the federal Minister for Environment for approval. The Norfolk Island community will be notified when the public comment period opens.

The Committee also endorsed the heritage management plans for the Longridge Arches and the HMS Sirius wreck site. While both sites are outside of the Kingston area, they are significant historic sites and are listed on the Commonwealth Heritage Register.

Due to growing interest from external parties to access Kingston and associated heritage sites for research activities, a research policy was endorsed by the Committee requiring researchers to contact site management and submit an expression of interest outlining their research intentions three months ahead of work commencing.

The Committee welcomed Dr Pauline Reynolds as the Museums New Collections Officer, and acknowledged the work of the previous Collections Officer, Ms Bethany Holland. The Committee expressed their concerns relating to collections management including the need for humidity control for both storage and display, staffing skills shortage and lack of storage capacity for the collections. The Kingston Museums’ Manager informed the Committee of the increase in visitor numbers compared to pre-COVID years.

Norfolk Island Cemetery’s Sexton, Mr Shane Quintal, took the committee on a cemetery tour, with a focus on the ongoing need for conservation of the heritage headstones. Expert member Dr Jane Harrington and Archaeologist, Mr Tom Sapienza have developed a draft Cemetery Conservation plan in consultation with Mr Quintal to be tabled at the next Committee meeting for endorsement.

The Committee was provided with an overview of water quality issues and impacts on Kingston, and heard about scientific evidence being collected to develop a baseline understanding of the systemic water quality issues across the site. The data is expected to allow for identification of water contamination and its sources, which can then be used to inform development of appropriate strategies for the management of both heritage and marine park assets.

The Advisory Committee includes three local members (Duncan Evans, David ‘Dids’ Evans and Susan Prior), three expert members (Duncan Edward, Janet Carding and Jane Harrington) and is chaired by the Administrator of Norfolk Island. The next Committee meeting is scheduled for June 2023.

For further information or discussion, please contact the Office of the Administrator (phone 22152 or email office.administrator@infrastructure.gov.au).

Eric Hutchinson

Chair, Kingston and Arthur’s Vale Historic Area Advisory Committee