Heritage Western Cape (HWC) is a provincial heritage resources authority established by the Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport of the government of the Western Cape province in South Africa. It is a public entity set up under the terms of the National Heritage Resources Act.[2] It is mandated to care for that part of South Africa's national estate that is of provincial and local significance in the Western Cape. It may delegate responsibility for heritage resources of local significance to competent municipal governments.[3]
Heritage Western Cape is best known as the custodian of approximately 2,500 provincial heritage sites, but is also responsible for administration of other forms of protection of heritage established under the terms of the National Heritage Resources Act.
History
Exit gate of the Castle of Good Hope provincial heritage site, Cape Town. The first site in South Africa to be formally protected by heritage law[4]
Heritage Western Cape is the successor body to the former National Monuments Council in the Western Cape. Under the 1996 Constitution of South Africa, cultural matters are a competency shared between national and provincial government.[5] This necessitated the creation of a system whereby many of the responsibilities of the former National Monuments Council were devolved to provincial level via the National Heritage Resources Act.
Whilst provinces may pass their own heritage conservation legislation, the Government of the Western Cape chose to use provisions of the National Heritage Resources Act which allow it to establish a provincial heritage resources authority (PHRA). Heritage Western Cape was hence established by regulation on 25 October 2002.[6] In 2003 a Council was appointed by the province's Minister for Cultural Affairs and Sport and has since met on a quarterly basis.[7]
The council has established a number of sub-committees which meet regularly to carry out the legal responsibilities of the organisation. For the most part this concerns the processing of almost 3 300 applications per annum for work on sites protected under the terms of the National Heritage Resources Act.[8]
Heritage Western Cape inherited responsibility for approximately 2,500 former national monuments, now known as "provincial heritage sites".[9] The National Heritage Resources Act provides for a greater variety of protection than did its predecessor and the organisation has continued to institute protections of various forms under its terms.[10] A large part of this work is dedicated to transforming the heritage landscape of the Western Cape to ensure that the heritage of all its people enjoys equal recognition and appropriate protection.[11]
The logo of the organisation was launched by the provincial Minister for Cultural Affairs and Sport on 13 May 2006.[12]
SAHRA and HWC's mandate
Heritage Western Cape is subject to a biennial assessment of competency by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) in terms of which it is determined which aspects of the National Heritage Resources Act it is qualified to implement.[13] It has been assessed as competent to deal with all areas over which a provincial heritage resources authority is permitted to act, aside from Section 36 of the Act which covers certain aspects relating to graves and burials.
To clarify areas of uncertainty regarding mandate, representatives of Heritage Western Cape meet quarterly with SAHRA. Following a court case that created uncertainty regarding responsibility for sites that have been recognised as Grade I by SAHRA, but which have not yet been declared as national heritage sites, a memorandum of understanding has been concluded which allows Heritage Western Cape to deal with all such matters unless they concern archaeological sites and graves protected under Sections 35 and 36 of the National Heritage Resources Act.[14][15]
Heritage Western Cape is governed by a Council which is appointed by the province's Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport.[17] It consists of up to 14 members appointed for a three-year term of office.[18] The council meets quarterly and has established an executive committee to manage its business between its meetings.[7] The executive is chaired by the chairperson of the council and is otherwise made up of the chairpersons of standing sub-committees.[19]
The terms of office of the present Council and its sub-committees expire on 31 October 2023.
There are five standing sub-committees which oversee aspects of the day-to-day business of the organisation. They are made up of specialists who are recognised for their expertise and experience in the areas of business of the committees on which they serve.[7]
Built Environment and Landscapes Committee (BELCOM)
Established in 2003, it considers permit applications relating to structures and landscapes that are provincial heritage sites, provisionally protected, on the register of heritage resources, public monuments or memorials, or older than 60 years. Applications to work on such sites are assessed by the committee to consider whether or not they should be approved. The committee meets monthly.
Archaeological, Palaeontological and Meteorites Permit Committee (APM)
Applications to work on archaeological and palaeontological sites and meteorite permit applications in the province are considered by the APM Committee. It also considers applications concerning provincial heritage sites, provisionally protected sites and sites on the register of heritage resources that have been protected for their archaeological or palaeontological value. The committee also advises the IACom regarding impact assessments on archaeological, palaeontological and meteorite resources. The committee meets monthly.
Established in 2010 it is responsible for considering impact assessments that are submitted to Heritage Western Cape under the terms of the National Heritage Resources Act, the National Environment Management Act, or The Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act. The committee meets monthly.
Appeals Committee
Established in 2003 this Committee deals with appeals made against decisions taken by the committees and staff of Heritage Western Cape. The committee meets monthly. (There is a further right of appeal to a tribunal established by the provincial Minister for Cultural Affairs and Sport.)[20]
Inventories, Gradings and Interpretations Committee (IGIC)
This committee was established in 2012 via amalgamation of three sub-committees. It considers and makes recommendations to the council on grading of heritage resources; adoption of inventories of heritage resources submitted to Heritage Western Cape by municipalities and conservation bodies; formal protection of sites as provincial heritage sites or placement on the 'register' and texts for the interpretation of heritage sites.[8] The committee meets quarterly.
Mr Michael Janse van Rensburg: July 2021 – present[23]
Staff complement
Heritage Western Cape is managed by a chief executive officer (CEO) who is assisted by a deputy director.[24] It has the following sections: administrative support, professional services (responsible for processing application) and policy and planning responsible for policy development, research and inventories). The latter two are made up of professional archaeologists, architects, historians and planners.
In terms of delegations from the council the staff deal with areas of responsibility of the organisation not covered by the committees, mainly the processing of applications for minor work on heritage resources.[25] The staff also provides support to and makes recommendations to the council and its sub-committees.[26]
There are approximately 2,500 provincial heritage sites in the Western Cape. Most of these were declared under legislation that predates the National Heritage Resources Act. Known as "national monuments" from 1969 to 2000 and "historical monuments" from 1934 to 1969,[27][28] these sites are in the process of being graded in terms of the grading system prescribed by the Act and which determines whether they remain provincial heritage sites, are included in the register of heritage resources or no longer enjoy formal protection.[29]
Badge used in South Africa from 1934–1969 to mark what are now Provincial Heritage Sites
Badge used in South Africa from 1969–2000 to mark what are now Provincial Heritage Sites
Alternative version of badge used between 1969 and 2000
Badge used in the Western Cape since 2012 to replace earlier markers designating Provincial Heritage Sites
In its early years Heritage Western Cape did not declare any new Provincial Heritage Sites, but in recent years has resumed declaration and has since 2009 gazetted the following:
Dove Cote, Overwacht provincial heritage site, Somerset West
Inventories of the national estate consist of identified heritage resources situated within a particular geographical area and/or within a certain category (e.g.: built environment, archaeology, etc.) and must be submitted to Heritage Western Cape at the time of compiling or amending a municipal planning scheme.[53]
Inventories of heritage resources for aspects of the national estate situated in the following municipalities have been submitted to Heritage Western Cape:
Cape Town (Built environment of various suburbs.)[54]
Drakenstein (Built and scenic environment of entire municipality.)[55]
George (Built environment of entire municipality.)[56]
Knysna (Built environment of the town of Knysna.)[57]
Overstrand (Built environment of entire municipality.)[58]
Prince Albert (Built and scenic environment of the town of Prince Albert.)[59]
Stellenbosch (1. Built environment of historic core of the town of Stellenbosch. 2. University of Stellenbosch Main Campus.)[60][61]
Swartland (Built environment of the entire municipality.)[62]
These inventories deal primarily with built environment in an urban context and are not complete inventories of the municipalities concerned.
Funding
Excavations at Pinnacle Point, a provincial heritage site important to the understanding of the origins of modern humans, Mossel Bay
Heritage Western Cape receives an annual transfer payment from the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport which covers the bulk of its operational costs. Its staff members are public servants in the employ of the department which carries the cost of their salaries and benefits.[64] Other sources of income include fees levied from charges for processing of applications.
Conservation bodies
Heritage Western Cape is required to register conservation bodies interested in the protection of the national estate in the province. It has registered 84 such organisations which are consulted on matters before the organisation.[65][66]
^Section 1, Public Finance Management Act, Act 1 of 1999, (as amended)
^National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^Section26(1)(g), National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^p.2, Oberholster JJ, The Historical Monuments of South Africa, Cape Town: The Rembrandt van Rijn Foundation, 1972
^Schedule 4, Part A, Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act. 108 of 1996
^Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 5937, Cape Town: 25 October 2002
^ abAnnual Report 2013/14, Cape Town, Heritage Western Cape, 2014
^Section 58(11)(a), National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^Compare Chapter II, Parts 1 & 2 of the National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999 with Section 10 of the National Monuments Act, Act 28 of 1969 as amended to 1979
^See: Vision and Mission, p3, Annual Report 2012/13, Cape Town, Heritage Western Cape, 2013
^Section 8(6), National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^High Court of South Africa – Cape of Good Hope Division, Waenhuiskrans Arniston Ratepayers Association and Heritage Western Cape vs. Verrewiede Eiendomsontwikkeling (Edms) Bpk and the Cape Agulhas Municipality, Case No. 1926/2008
^Memorandum of Agreement Concluded by and Between The South African Heritage Resources Agency and Heritage Western Cape, 25 September 2012
^Section3(2), National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^Regulation 2, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 5937, Cape Town: 25 October 2002
^Regulations 2(8) and 2(12), Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 5937, Cape Town: 25 October 2002
^Section 2.b.i. Heritage Western Cape: Policy on Committees of Council, 2013
^Section 49(2), National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol. 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^HWC Annual Reports 2003-2014, Heritage Western Cape, Cape Town
^HWC Annual Reports 2003-2015, Heritage Western Cape, Cape Town
^Notice 12 of 2021 Heritage Western Cape, New Chief Executive Officer, 2 July 2021
^Regulation 9, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 5937, Cape Town: 25 October 2002
^Regulation 11(1)(c), Regulation 10(1), Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 5937, Cape Town: 25 October 2002
^See minutes of committee meetings posted on the HWC website
^Section 10, National Monuments Act, Act 28 of 1969
^Act 4 of 1934 Natural and Historical Monuments, Relics and Antiques Act, 1934
^For progress with grading of former national monuemnts in the Western Cape Province see the minutes of meetingso of the Council and Executive Committee of HWC on the organisation's website.
^Provincial Notice 4619, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 6621, Cape Town: 9 April 2009, p.549
^Provincial Notice 4618, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 6621, Cape Town: 9 April 2009, p.548
^Provincial Notice 4620, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 6621, Cape Town: 9 April 2009, p.551
^Provincial Notice 79/20109, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 6699, Cape Town: 19 February 2010, p.248
^Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 6902, Cape Town: 26 August 20112, p.1723
^Provincial Notice 70/2012, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 606, Cape Town: 23 March 2012
^Provincial Notice 69/2012, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 606, Cape Town: 23 March 2012
^Provincial Notice 70/2012, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 7075, Cape Town: 14 December 2012, p.2672
^Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No. 7202, Cape Town, 29 November 2013, pp.3178-3180
^Provincial Notice 254/2014, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 7310, Cape Town: 23 September 2014
^Provincial Notice 255/2014, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 7310, Cape Town: 23 September 2014
^Provincial Notice 256/2014, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 7310, Cape Town: 23 September 2014
^Provincial Notice 253/2014, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 7310, Cape Town: 23 September 2014
^Provincial Notice 318/2014, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 77336, Cape Town: 28 November 2014
^Provincial Notice 163/2015, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No 739, Cape Town: 29 May 2015
^Provincial Notice 164/2015, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No 739, Cape Town: 29 May 2015
^Provincial Notice 326/2015, Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette, No 7497, Cape Town: 24 September 2015
^Section 30, National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
^See ISIS (City of Cape Town's Integrated Spatial Information System), Unpublished, Cape Town
^Winter S, Baumann N, Jacobs G & Attwell M: DHSG (Drakenstein Heritage Survey Group), Drakenstein Heritage Survey, Unpublished, Muizenberg, 2012
^The Matrix Urban Designers. George Survey, Unpublished, Port Elizabeth, 2013
^Winter S, Baumann N, Jacobs G & Attwell M, Drakenstein Heritage Survey, Unpublished, Muizenberg, 2012
^Prince Albert Heritage Foundation, Prince Albert Survey, Unpublished, Prince Albert, 2011
^Stellenbosch Local Municipality, Stellenbosch Heritage Survey, Unpublished, Stellenbosch, 2013
^Rennie Scurr Adendorff Achitectus, Peter Buttgens Architects and Claire Abrahamss Architecture – Urban Design – Heritage, Stellenbosch University – Core Campus Heritage Survey and Inventory of the Built Environment & Cultural Landscape, Unpublished, Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University
^Winter S, Baumann N, Jacobs G, Attwell M, Swartland Heritage Survey, Unpublished, Muizenberg, 2010
^Tulbagh: A South African Cultural Landscape Heritage Survey and Grading Inventory, Unpublished, Tulbagh: Tulbagh Valley Heritage Foundation and Tulbagh Friends of the Museum, 2013
^Regulation 10(1), Province of the Western Cape Provincial Gazette Extraordinary, No. 5937, Cape Town: 25 October 2002
^Section 25(1)(b), National Heritage Resources Act, Act 25 of 1999, Government Notice 506, Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, Vol 406, No 19974, Cape Town, 28 April 1999
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