Melton Dry Stone Walls

The City of Melton lies on a vast volcanic plain that stretches to the South Australian border. Numerous volcanic eruption points around Melton, have provided plentiful field stone for the construction of farm fences, stockyards and dam walls. Early European settlers constructed walls and other structures without the use of mortar and in the style of their region. In Melton there are walls built by Irish, Scottish and English wallers.

Many of these dry stone walls and structures are still standing 150 years later as a reminder of the pastoral origins of this area.

Council has listed a number of walls on the schedule to the Heritage Overlay. If you think your wall may be on the Heritage Overlay you can check with Council by calling the Strategic Planning Team on 9747 7200 or by emailing citysupport@melton.vic.gov.au

If your wall is on the Heritage Overlay you will need to contact Council if you want to make changes to the wall, these changes could be:

• new gateways
• new wall ends
• demolition of sections
• rebuilding
• reconstruction

Repairs such as replacing stones or straining wires and posts do not require a permit.

The City of Melton provides a number of services to the owners of dry stone walls, including free advice on repair and maintenance, literature on walls, Heritage Assistance Funds for wall repairs and free workshops to teach dry stone walling. Council has also prepared a Keeping Dry Stone Walls in Good Repair brochure(PDF, 4MB) to assist landowners in keeping their dry stone wall in good repair.

For information on the history of dry stone walls in Melton, you can access the City of Melton Dry Stone Wall Study.

Council also has a dry stone wall dry stone wall driving trail that highlights some good examples of dry stone walls in the City.

The Dry Stone Walls Association of Australia Inc. (DSWAA) is a not-for-profit organisation founded in 2002 at Ballarat, Victoria. The Association is a diverse group of rural property owners, farmers, dry stone wallers, urban dwellers, landscapers and others with a special interest in the identification, documentation and conservation of dry stone walls. The DSWAA website provides information on dry stone wallers, workshops and field days and it produces a newsletter for members.

If you require further information on your dry stone walls or property, please contact our Strategic Planning Team on 9747 7200 or email citysupport@melton.vic.gov.au