Preservation: A Developing Focus of American Archaeology

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Abstract
Social, historic, ethnohistoric, and archaeological values increasingly are considered in federal decision making affecting land use and modification. In situ preservation of significant archaeological properties is now often attainable through sensitive project planning. When destruction is unavoidable, funds are more often available for sound programs of data recovery than was the case in the past. The laws and policies which govern historic preservation challenge archaeologists to engage in regional planning, participate in agency decision making, emphasize conservation over excavation, develop explicit statements of research potential, and perform in a businesslike and professional manner. Particularism on the part of archaeologists, and procedural fossilization on the part of agencies, may hamper the development of balanced programs for preservation and scientific research. [Historic preservation, cultural resource management, public archaeology, archaeological law]