Avoiding Archaeological Disasters: A Risk Management Approach

You think it can’t happen to you, but it can. One day, months into your construction project, your front end load operator runs into bones and wooden slats. Your county coroner says it is not a crime scene, and refers you to the local archaeology department. The archaeologist tells you that it is a very important discovery. Work stops. Archaeological discoveries happen all the time in the course of projects. Most are manageable, some are less so, and some are mismanaged, wasting time and money. If you are not prepared, the consequences can be disastrous. This book is for project engineers, project managers, construction managers, the staff of affected government agencies, and archaeological consultants. In its pages you receive enough information, enough archaeological perspective, to intelligently work with the various parties involved in your project and avoid an archaeological disaster.

An archaeologist with Northwest Anthropology, Darby Stapp has worked in the Pacific Northwest for nearly thirty years. Stapp is coauthor of the book Tribal Cultural Resource Management (AltaMira 2002). Recently, Stapp was honored with the 2008 Fitzner-Eberhardt Award honoring his contributions to science education.An archaeologist with Northwest Anthropology, Julia Longenecker has worked in the Pacific Northwest for nearly thirty years.