14/11/2013
Conservation
Volunteers Australia and the Port Arthur Historic Sites Management
Authority (PAHSMA) are partnering with the community and volunteers to
help conserve the Coal Mines Historic Site at Saltwater River, which is
part of the Australian Convict Sites World Heritage property. The Coal
Mines were the first mechanised mines in Tasmania and the most severe
tier on Governor Arthur’s progressive scale of convict punishment and
reform.
Nowadays, this peaceful site overlooking Norfolk Bay on the Tasman
Peninsula is loved by locals and visitors alike for its picturesque
ruins scattered within native bushland evoking an atmosphere of past
confinement, toil and suffering. The size of the area and minimal
facilities offers a sense of discovery for visitors as they chance upon
ruins along winding bush tracks or encounter some of the local
wildlife.
Previously managed by the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service, the
Coal Mines Historic Site has been managed by PAHSMA since 2004.
Management and conservation activities at the Site are guided by the
recently-completed Coal Mines Historic Site Master Plan (www.portarthur.org.au/cmhsmasterplan).
Project coordinator John Hueston says that a number of necessary
activities have been identified to conserve the site whilst maintaining
its unique appeal.
“These include vegetation management, fuel load reduction, coastal
protection, walking track maintenance, visitor surveys and flora and
fauna monitoring and survey including of the local rabbit population.”
“The project is being launched at the Coal Mines on Saturday 16th
November at 11.30. Anyone who is interested in assisting is encouraged
to come along between 11am and 1pm to discuss the project with the team,
sign up and enjoy a light lunch. All are welcome.”
The project, ‘The Coal Mines Historic Site and Engaging Community’
was the recipient of funding from the Federal Government under the ‘Your
Community Heritage Program’.
Work is intended to commence during November and to carry on through
to the end of 2014. Anyone interested in helping out can contact John
Hueston on 0429 334 481 or john.hueston@conservationvolunteers.com.au.
More information on the Coal Mines Historic Site is available at www.portarthur.org.au/coalmines
Signage at the walking track at the Coal Mines tells the Site's convict history
Entrance to the notorious underground solitary cells
Ruins of the prison barracks at the Coal Mines Historic Site
Ruins from the convict era are scattered throughout the bushland site