DEAR EDITOR:

Archaeologists, and people interested in preserving and recording the evidence of our nation’s history are facing a nightmare scenario. Archaeological sites are destroyed constantly in the United States, many without being recorded and studied. Since the passage of the National Historic Preservation Act in the 1970s, federally funded projects, like highway constructions, or the construction of reservoirs, must have an archaeological component to identify if there are archaeological sites that would be impacted or destroyed, which should be protected, or whether a more intensive study of potentially important sites should be performed. This process originates in Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. In short, this process of assessing whether sites are going to be destroyed and what to do about it cannot happen without State Historic Preservation Offices, and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices. These offices review proposals for how to study the impact to archaeological sites, and help decide what kinds of actions should be taken to mitigate their damage or destruction. Section 106 is the backbone of most archaeological work and training in the United States.

Even though the National Historic Preservation Act is immensely popular, Section 106 and historic preservation in the United States are under active assault. In March Congress appropriated money to fund work under Section 106 through the National Park Service Historic Preservation Fund to support State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices. That fund is now being illegally withheld against the wishes of both Congress and the broader public. Additionally, the President’s budget request would virtually eliminate funding for the offices that oversee historic preservation and Section 106.

The end of funding for Section 106 is a not-so-veiled attempt to destroy archaeology and historic preservation in the United States. As a consequence of this stranglehold on funding, the Ohio History Connection (Ohio’s State Historic Preservation Office) will have to layoff staff, and will not be able to meet their obligations under Section 106. The strategy here seems clear: make it near impossible to fulfill the legal obligations of Section 106, and use the resulting disaster as permission to kill archaeology for the public good in the United States. Please reach out to your representatives to tell them funding for archaeology and preserving the evidence of our past is important to you.

JONATHAN PAIGE

The New Mexico Consortium

Kent