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Fri, 15 Mar 1996 12:15:18 -0500 |
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RESEND
(Sorry, my new software has a mind of its own!)
I would urge every historical archaeologist out there to read the new =
SAA Newsletter article by Kurt Carr, Pa. State Arcaheologist.
Recent events in Pennsylvania (legislative changes toward state mandated =
CRM surveys and new survey guidelines by the Bureau for Historic =
Preservation) seriously threaten the historical archaeological record in =
Pennsylvania.
The BHP has written off entire areas of the state based on a prehistoric =
archaeological predictive model. This means, in a nutshell, that =
projects requiring state environmental permits within these areas =
(watersheds) will not be responsible for impacts to unidentified =
historical archaeological resources.
If the folks in Harrisburg don't drop their prehistoric bias and start =
dealing with ALL archaeological resources on an even playing field, the =
long term consequences will be devastating. Despite the assurances by =
the SHPO, Brent Glass, in a December 1995 letter to me that,=20
"Determinations of Eligibility and recommendations for mitigation =
reviewed or made in this office are not based on the personal research =
agendas of my staff. Rather, they are based on the potential of the =
resource in question to provide important information on past human =
behavior."
Bulls**t. Anyone who works (or has worked) in Pa. and with BHP =
archaeologists knows the reality of the situation and can see right =
through Glass' comments. The situation right now, on the legislative =
front, is hopeless because the funding and regulations have been signed =
into law. It's not too late, however, to put some pressure on our =
archaeological colleagues in Harrisburg to change their approach and =
embrace all of the archaeological record, not just the "interesting" =
deeply buried prehistoric sites.
David S. Rotenstein
Historical Solutions
EMAIL: [log in to unmask]
WWW: http://www.sas.upenn.edu/~drotenst/
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