Defining heritage values and significance for improved resource management: an application to Australian tourism

The values and significance of heritage resources are often acknowledged but not integrated into the management process. This paper presents a framework for explicitly identifying these resource qualities and applying them to site management. It defines values in terms of a resource's intrinsic (objectively measurable) and extrinsic (largely subjectively measurable) qualities. The derivative assessment of significance then creates direction for decision making where conservation takes precedence over resource exploitation and renewable resource exploitation takes precedence over the exploitation of non-renewable resources. The framework, developed from a study of World Heritage values of the Great Sandy Region, Australia, provides a basis for achieving agreement between resource owners/managers and resource users on the nature of permissible activities using valued resources.