Several categories of permits oriented toward specific types
of investigation are issued by the Commission. Pursuant to 13 TAC §26.13
(relating to Application for Archeological Permits), the permit applicant
or project sponsor is responsible for ensuring that all permitted
projects are undertaken by qualified personnel and with adequate funds
and material support. The following is a list of permits associated
with archeological investigations:
(1) Annual permit. A public agency or institution may
be granted an Annual Permit, allowing for survey, recording, study,
protection, stabilization, or conservation projects that cover a number
of similar investigations at different locations. The annual permit
will be issued for a specific period of time and may be developed
by the public agency or institution, and the Commission either under
the auspices of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or by means of
a letter agreement. Annual Permits may also be used to govern the
survey, recording, study, protection, stabilization, and conservation
projects related to designated landmarks or eligible landmarks. The
Annual Permit will adhere to, but not be limited to, the Commission's
rules. The standards described in an Annual Permit will be administered
by a qualified archeologist on the staff of or contracted by that
public agency or institution. The Commission will be informed through
an annual report of all projects completed under the authority of
the Annual Permit with details adequate to confirm compliance.
(2) Alternative mitigation permit. A permit issued
for a mitigation alternative may require additional conditions including
studies, investigations, or other actions as deemed necessary by the
Commission, and will be specified in the terms and conditions of the
permit. Permission for construction to proceed may be granted depending
upon the satisfaction of the terms of the permit. Alternative forms
of mitigation may include, but are not limited to:
(A) monitoring of a proposed construction project to
record and report the discovery of unanticipated, important archeological
deposits;
(B) conducting archival and historical research to
document the significance of the site;
(C) capping or burying in place important archeological
deposits if deemed appropriate by the Commission;
(D) protecting significant remaining portions of a
site by donation of the undisturbed area to a nonprofit organization,
state agency, or a political subdivision of the state; and
(E) by acquisition and donation of a site or sites
to a nonprofit organization, state agency, or a political subdivision
of the state.
(3) Data recovery permit. This permit category is for
the purpose of full investigation and extensive excavation of particular
archeological site or sites. Data recovery must be based on a research
design approved by the Commission. The evidence from a skillfully
accomplished archeological excavation provides a detailed picture
of the human activities at the site; emphasis is placed on the information
that can be elicited rather than on the artifacts. In data recovery,
the archeological deposits are removed by digging and are, therefore
destroyed. Permission for construction to proceed may be granted depending
upon the results of this level of investigation. Specific requirements
may be set forth by the Commission in the permit. The destruction
can be justified only if:
(A) it is done with such care that antiquities and
cultural and environmental data in the area excavated are discovered,
and if possible, preserved;
(B) information has been accurately recorded, whether
its importance is immediately recognized or not, to remain available
after the site has disappeared; and
(C) the record and results of the investigation are
made available through publication.
(4) Emergency permit. A permit may be authorized by
the Commission for the purposes of performing investigations prior
to formal application for a permit. Any of the above-referenced categories
of investigations can be authorized under an emergency permit, but
an emergency permit will only be issued under conditions where the
investigations must be initiated or performed prior to the formal
issuance of the permit. Legitimate emergency conditions include those
situations when archeological deposits are discovered during development
or other construction projects or under conditions of natural or man-made
disasters that necessitate immediate action to deal with the situation
and findings. Permission for construction to proceed may be granted
depending upon the results of this level of investigation.
(5) Exhumation permit. The excavation of human burials
or cemeteries and its associated funerary objects by a professional
archeologist, or principal investigator in accordance with the Texas
Health and Safety Code, Chapter 711.
(6) Human remains testing permit. This permit is issued
for the destructive analysis of human remains that are accessioned
held-in-trust state associated collections maintained in certified
curatorial repositories as described under 13 TAC §29.5 (relating
to Disposition of State Associated Collections) and in accordance
with the Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 711. Destructive analysis
may include, but is not limited to, DNA, radiocarbon dating, or isotope
analysis. Specific requirements for investigation and reporting may
be required by the Commission as part of the permit.
(7) Intensive survey permit. This permit category is
for the purpose of an intensive 100 percent pedestrian survey of a
project or permit area. Components of an intensive survey may include,
but are not limited to, archival research, pedestrian survey, shovel
and/or mechanical subsurface probing, surface artifact inventories,
site recordation, and site assessment. Such a survey can be performed
in many ways but must, at a minimum, conform to the Archeological
Survey Standards for Texas, which are available through the Commission
and the Council of Texas Archeologists. Permission for construction
to proceed may be granted depending upon the results of this level
of investigation.
(8) Monitoring permit. Unless otherwise specifically
authorized by the Commission, this permit category is for the purpose
of having a professional archeologist on-site to observe construction
activities that may or will damage cultural resources. The archeologist
is required to report findings and impacts to sites to the Commission.
Monitoring may be conducted during or after other phases of archeological
investigation and may not involve the need for a separate permit.
However, if monitoring is the only investigation deemed necessary
relative to a construction activity, then a monitoring permit will
be required. If previously unrecorded and significant archeological
deposits are recorded during a monitoring investigation, construction
activities in the immediate area of the find must stop and the principal
investigator must notify the Archeology Division of the find within
24 hours. Specific requirements of monitoring may be required by the
Commission as part of the permit.
(9) Preservation of rock art. This permit category
is for the purposes of preserving, removing, recording, and copying
all manner of rock art. Preservation techniques which involve application
of brushes, heat, chemicals, water, chalk, petroleum products, or
other preparations to the rock surfaces are prohibited unless specifically
authorized by the Commission. Specific requirements may be included
by the Commission as part of the permit.
(10) Reconnaissance survey permit. This permit category
is for the purpose of location, inventory, and assessment of cultural
resources of a specific area by conducting archival searches and by
searching for sites. Reconnaissance is limited to recording site locations,
mapping, photographing, controlled surface sampling, and possible
limited shovel testing. A reconnaissance survey does not take the
place of an intensive survey; it is used to determine whether an intensive
survey will be warranted. Specific requirements may be imposed by
the Commission as part of the permit. Permission for construction
to proceed may be granted depending upon the results of this level
of investigation.
(11) Testing permit. This permit category is for the
purpose of detailed subsurface examination of cultural resources including
systematic test excavations of a particular site or area. Testing
must be oriented toward sampling a representative portion of a particular
site or sites and may be conducted to determine if a landmark contains
significant materials. Specific requirements may be imposed by the
Commission as part of the permit. Permission for construction to proceed
may be granted depending upon the results of this level of investigation.
(12) Underwater excavations permit. In order to fulfill
justified research objectives, or if damage to significant historic
and prehistoric sites cannot be avoided, a full-scale underwater archeological
excavation must be carried out under the direct supervision of an
underwater archeologist. The intensive investigation and excavation
must include documentary research and, for shipwrecks, detailed magnetometer
work. Excavations must be supported by adequate equipment and supplies
to insure proper recording, preservation, Cont'd... |
