Case Study: Kosciuszko National Park Huts
The Kosciuszko National Park Huts Conservation Strategy 2005 identifies nearly 70 intact huts and hundreds of ruins in Kosciuszko National Park as key elements in a landscape of national significance.
Arising after devastating bushfires in 2003 which destroyed many of the original huts, this project represents a new beginning in the management of huts as dynamic things in a living landscape rather than static objects from times gone by—managing the ‘now’ rather than only the ‘past’.
The strategy traces the rich layering over time of cultural connections in the Kosciuszko landscape for Indigenous people, settlers and recreation users. The hut landscapes bear witness to these connections, which include travel routes, patterns of use, named places, stories and traditions. The strategy found that the huts’ social and cultural landscape values, as part of a ‘living landscape’, form the basis for rebuilding some of the destroyed huts.
Melbourne company Context worked with GML on the project, which won the Conservation Plan category of the Energy Australia National Trust Heritage Awards 2006. Since 2007 most of the huts recommended for rebuilding have been completed with active community involvement and support. Kosciuszko National Park and its cultural heritage resources have arisen from the ashes!
Location: Kosciuszko National Park, NSW
Client: National Parks and Wildlife Service NSW
Project Type: Conservation Strategy