Cultural monuments

An instruction has been created for environmental management in Svalbard that describes how responsibility is divided between the Ministry of Climate and Environment (KLD), the Governor and the Directorate for Cultural Heritage.

KLD has the overall responsibility and coordinates environmental management.

The Directorate for Cultural Heritage (Riksantikvaren) has the main responsibility for cultural heritage management. They can grant exemptions for protected cultural heritage, protect newer cultural heritage with special value, and are the appeal body for decisions made by the Governor.

The Governor of Svalbard is a regional authority and is responsible for the daily work. They prepare cases for the Directorate for Cultural Heritage, can make some adjustments to protection boundaries, and are responsible for measures such as maintenance and excavations of protected cultural heritage.

Exemption from protection
If measures are planned that may conflict with protected cultural monuments or their protection zones, an exemption must be applied for.

The Directorate for Cultural Heritage is responsible for processing such applications. The application is first sent to the Governor, who assesses the case and makes a recommendation before it is forwarded to the Directorate for Cultural Heritage. It is the Directorate for Cultural Heritage that makes the final decision.

Decisions from the Directorate for Cultural Heritage can be appealed to the Ministry of Climate and Environment.

Change of protection zone
The Governor may in some cases adjust the protection zone around automatically protected cultural monuments. This may be relevant where there is a need for development, and where the size of the protection zone is not crucial for preserving the cultural monument.

An application for a change of protection zone is sent to the Governor.

Specific routines in Longyearbyen
Specific routines apply to excavation and drilling notifications in Longyearbyen. These are processed by the Longyearbyen local council. Read more here (lokalstyret.no).

Requirements for the application
Applications for permission to carry out measures on an automatically protected cultural monument or in the protection zone must be well documented. The owner/applicant is responsible for ensuring that the application is sufficiently informed.

The content of the application must be adapted to the individual measure; the need for documentation will vary. The documentation must be sufficient to enable the authorities to understand the scope and consequences of the measure, especially with regard to material interventions, changes and craftsmanship.

The application should contain:

·       applicant's name, address, telephone number and any contact person

·       a map with markings of the cultural monument, the name of the building/object

·       a description of the current situation with photographs

·       a description of the measure, what is to be done, design, use of materials, etc.

·       relevant drawings/sketches to scale, at least floor plans, sections and facades where necessary - the use of colours can clarify what is being removed and added

·       relevant detailed drawings, for example of new technical solutions

·       reasoning behind the proposed measurement

·       any historical drawings and images where relevant (for example in the case of a restoration)

·       reference to any management documents, decisions, meetings etc. where the measure is mentioned.

In practice, the applications are often very inadequate, and many applicants are unable to provide drawings and good descriptions. If it is professionally justified and we understand what the measure entails, we can elaborate on this by sending it to the Directorate for Cultural Heritage.

Routine maintenance of protected buildings and renovation
Normal maintenance can be carried out without applying for a permit. The definition of maintenance in this context is very narrow. This can include renewing roofing felt, replacing broken glass, renewing window putty, replacing small wooden parts that are damaged with exact copies, etc. Larger renovation work and changes require permission from the Directorate for Cultural Heritage. If in doubt, the Governor should be contacted.

The advice for maintenance and renovation is based on basic principles within building protection. The most important are:

·       as many parts of the building as possible should be preserved. Therefore, interventions during maintenance and improvement must be as small as possible

·       it is better to maintain than to repair, and it is better to repair than to replace

·       the same materials and methods must be used, both during maintenance and possible replacement.

·       hidden parts of the building (structures) are just as important to preserve as visible parts (surfaces).

·       if changes must be made, it is better to add something than to remove original or old parts. The best historical “archive” of buildings is the building itself

·       Old alterations and modifications to a building are often important to preserve. They can tell the story of the building's life through changing styles and uses

·       When something is removed or changed, the relevant documentation should be recorded and archived. In special cases, the documentation is secured by storing the removed part of the building

·       Changes should be reversible if possible. When needs change, the new elements can be removed, and the building will appear as it was before the change.