Sewell Mining Town is authentic in terms of the ensemble’s forms and designs, materials and substances, uses and functions, and location and setting. The industrial sector of the property still operates, thereby assuring its full authenticity of use and function. Although copper flotation (metal separation) is no longer performed in the Concentrator, mineral grinding still is. Sewell is a remarkable example of synergy between production and property conservation, and its future viability largely depends on this balance.
In the non-industrial sector buildings, some interior transformations took place in the 1980s, but are reversible. Most of the buildings have been thoroughly restored and are subjected to periodic maintenance; their construction systems, design and essential characteristics have been preserved. The town also includes buildings that authentically illustrate the full range of its construction stages, including the last stage before its depopulation, when management introduced modern reinforced concrete buildings (Building No. 501, built in 1958, for example). It has been recommended, in the context of the Committee’s comment at the time of inscription concerning adaptive re-use, that evidence of the town’s buildings’ original functions be strengthened.
The widespread use of wood creates a serious potential for fire, although the high altitude reduces this risk, and there are strict safety procedures to minimise this and other potential disasters. The high altitude has also made the property inhospitable to xylophagous insects.