• All historical sites are protected by the National Monuments Act. Conservation areas surrounding the sites can also be declared to conserve the character and context of these historical areas.

• The National Monuments Council (NMC) is a statutory organisation established under the National Monuments Act (28 of 1969) as the administrative body responsible for the protection of the country’s cultural and historical heritage. The NMC has many duties according to the Act, and their main responsibilities are:

• to preserve and protect the historical and cultural heritage,
• to encourage and promote the preservation and protection of that heritage, and
• to co-ordinate all activities in connection with national monuments and cultural treasures, in order that they be retained as tokens of the past and may serve as an inspiration for the future (NMC, 1997a).

• It is one of the primary functions of the NMC to make recommendations to the Minister of Arts and Culture regarding the declaration of a national monument. There are over 4 000 monuments in South Africa, and a framework has now been developed to ensure that no property of cultural or historical importance will be developed, demolished or altered without careful consideration. A site can become a conservation-worthy property and be included on the register due to its historical, cultural or aesthetic value. The primary purpose of the register is to identify, declare and place conservation-worthy property on the register, which will then be protected by the National Monuments Act (NMC, 1997b).
• The NMC can also declare conservation areas, which can be urban or natural areas of historical importance. Conservation areas are subject to stricter planning regulations, which include the type of development that is allowed to occur in these areas and the use thereof.
• The first legislation for the protection of South Africa’s cultural heritage was the Bushman Relics Protection Act of 1911, which protected all archaeological objects and sites. Several other Acts followed, but the National Monuments Act and the NMC is the primary instrument which currently protects our cultural and historical heritage.
• The NMC can also provide temporary protection by provisionally declaring a property a monument for 5 years, until investigations prove that it can be permanently declared a national monument.
• The fundamental principles for heritage conservation in South Africa and Greater Johannesburg are:
• The heritage is a valuable, finite, non-renewable and irreplaceable resource, which must be carefully managed to ensure its survival.
• Every generation has a moral responsibility to act as a trustee of the natural and cultural heritage for succeeding generations.
• South Africa has a rich natural and man-made heritage, which is unique and worthy of conservation.
• Numerous cultures have contributed to the heritage and have the right to be protected.
• Every person, community and institution has an obligation to ensure that significant elements of the natural and cultural heritage is not destroyed or damaged.
• There are several further conservation principles that the NMC follows in order to ensure that these sites are well conserved, and include:
• The aim of conservation is to preserve, retain and recover the cultural interest of a place, and must include provision for its maintenance and its future.
• Education of the community regarding the value of the natural and cultural heritage and the purpose of its conservation should be promoted.
• The conservation should be preceded by an investigation into the history and physical condition of the place, to ensure that no disturbance takes place.
• The cultural significance should be determined by analysis of the evidence gathered and consultation with all interested and affected parties.
• Before conservation is undertaken, a conservation policy should be prepared stating the cultural significance, the physical condition, all conservation processes, and a motivation and supporting evidence of the area.
• Compatible uses will be determined by the policy.
• All documentation of evidence and decisions must be kept.
• Appropriate supervision and monitoring must be maintained at all stages of the work.
• Conservation must take into consideration all aspects of cultural significance, and not place emphasis on one at the expense of the others.
• All buildings and environments must be recognised as products of their own time, but also as evidence of a continuous historical development.
• Conservation of historically valuable places includes the maintenance of not only the buildings, but also the whole visual setting and context.
• Conservation is based on respect for the material and should involve minimal intervention.
• Architectural features, elements and components, which have deteriorated, should be repaired rather than replaced and the replacement of missing evidence must be based on historical evidence.
• Conservation must be based on traditional techniques of all the disciplines contributing to the study and protection of the place.
• Reversible intervention should be used, so that when alterations and additions are to be removed in the future, the original fabric would again be visible.
• Contemporary design for new or existing buildings is encouraged if it does not disfigure the fabric or character of the environs.
• The contents of historical places form part of their cultural significance and should not be removed.
• A building or work should remain in its historical location.
• Culturally valuable buildings should be occupied and used at all times (NMC, 1997d).

A programme of action was identified for environmental management through the Local Agenda 21 process (GJMC, 1997):

The EMLC LDO (1997) considered various factors to be of importance for the conservation of the built environment:

• preservation of historical buildings, structures and cultural heritage;
• environmental considerations during decisions concerning land use and development;
• enhancement and rehabilitation of the built environment

In terms of the Local Agenda 21 process the following needs were identified for the conservation of the built environment: