Heritage Permits
Issued: January 26, 1996
Revised: March 12, 1999
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this directive on Heritage Permits is to
provide guidelines to Archaeology Branch staff and permit
applicants as to the information the branch should take into
account when reviewing applications, the general procedures
to be followed by branch staff in processing an application,
and the general procedures that should be followed upon
issuance of permits.
MANDATE:
Pursuant to section 13 of the
Heritage Conservation Act (1996, RSBC,
Chap. 187), a permit issued under section 12 or 14 is
required before a person can undertake any actions affecting
heritage objects as referred to in subsection 13(1) or
affecting heritage sites as referred to in subsection 13(2),
or any activities referred to in subsection 14(1) of the
Act.
AUTHORITY:
Pursuant to Section 12(1) and Order in Council 1254
(1995), the Director of the Archaeology Branch and the
Manager, Permitting and Assessment Section, have been
authorized in writing by the Minister to exercise the powers
of the Minister to issue permits under Sections 12(2) and
14(2) of the Heritage Conservation Act (1996, RSBC, Chap.
187).
POLICY STATEMENT:
There are three basic categories of activities for which
permits are most often sought: academic research, resource
management, and alterations to sites to facilitate
development. Academic research and resource management
activities most often require heritage investigation or
inspection permits pursuant to Section 14(2), while
alteration permits are sought under the provisions of
Section 12(2).
When making a decision or recommendation as to issuance
of a permit under sections 12(2) and 14(2) of the
Heritage Conservation Act, the Archaeology Branch should
take into account the following:
- the nature and justification of proposed activities;
- the training, experience and logistical ability of
an applicant to successfully complete the proposed
activities (inspection and investigation permits only);
- comments provided by any First Nation known to
assert a traditional interest in the area of the
proposed activities; and
- other relevant information.
For academic research permits, the branch will consider
all of the following criteria or equivalent information as
it applies to the person carrying out the work being
authorized (applicant or field director if different from
the applicant):
- BA degree in archaeology, or anthropology with a
specialty in archaeology, or is an advanced student
(third or fourth year) working under the direction of a
supervisor who has previously held a permit;
- experience conducting archaeological site survey
(approx. 20 working days);
- experience conducting archaeological excavation
(approx. 60 working days) that includes approximately 20
days supervising excavations (investigation permits
only);
- compliance with all requirements and conditions of
previous permits held (if any);
- access to facilities and the services of related
specialists required to carry out field work, analysis
and report preparation;
- can arrange for the proper curation of recovered
cultural materials at a repository that is acceptable to
the Archaeology Branch.
For resource management permits, as decisions are often
irreversible and can form the basis of subsidiary decisions
that may result in the loss of archaeological resources,
additional qualifications are desirable. In these cases, the
branch will consider all of the following criteria or
equivalent information as it applies to the person carrying
out the work being authorized (applicant or field director
if different from the applicant):
- MA degree in archaeology, or anthropology with a
specialty in archaeology, or BA degree with an
equivalent combination of post-graduate training and
experience;
- experience in archaeological resource management
(approx. 360 working days) that includes approximately
40 days supervising archaeological impact assessments in
the general culture area for which the permit is sought
(e.g., Northwest Coast, Interior Plateau,
Sub-Arctic/Northern Boreal Forest);
- experience conducting archaeological excavation
(approx. 60 working days) that includes approximately
20 days supervising mitigation projects (investigation
permits only);
- senior author of an archaeological impact assessment
report consistent with the reporting guidelines outlined
in Appendix A of the British Columbia Archaeological
Impact Assessment Guidelines;
- compliance with all requirements and conditions of
previous permits held (if any);
- access to facilities and the services of related
specialists required to carry out field work, analysis
and report preparation;
- can arrange for the proper curation of recovered
cultural materials at a repository that is acceptable to
the Archaeology Branch.
REVIEW PROCEDURES
Upon receipt of an application for permit in the
Archaeology Branch, the following procedures will normally
be undertaken:
- the Manager, Permitting and Assessment, assigns the
application to a Project Officer for internal review (a
peer review may also be conducted if appropriate);
- the Project Officer reviews the Application for
completeness of information; if found incomplete,
additional information is requested from the applicant;
- complete Applications are referred by the Manager to
First Nations asserting traditional interest in the
proposed study area, with a request for comment,
preferably in writing, within a reasonable time, usually
15-30 days;
- written comments that identify concerns over the
study methodology are referred by the Manager to the
applicant for response;
- the Manager makes a decision as to permit issuance,
or makes a recommendation to the Director, Archaeology
Branch, with respect to issuance, based on the review
comments provided by both the Project Officer and First
Nation(s).
Permits will be issued from the Archaeology Branch in a
standard format and, pursuant to section 12(3) of the Act,
may include specific requirements, specifications or
conditions the issuing authority considers appropriate.
Generally, the following terms and conditions will apply to
all heritage inspection and investigation permits involving
archaeological activities:
- permits shall only be valid for the term stipulated
on the permit form, unless otherwise cancelled.
Extensions will be considered upon submission of an
application at least 30 days prior to the expiry date of
the permit;
- permit-holders shall provide the branch with two
bound copies of a written report outlining the work
carried out under the terms of the permit;
- a person designated by the branch may at any time
inspect work authorized by permits, including records
and materials recovered;
- upon completion of any inspections or investigations
involving excavations or other site alterations,
permit-holders shall make all reasonable efforts to
restore sites as nearly as possible to their former
condition;
- permit-holders must utilize any recording forms,
formats or systems required by the branch;
- archaeological impact assessment and management
studies must conform with the British Columbia
Archaeological Impact Assessment Guidelines (Archaeology
Branch 1998);
- prior to permit issuance, permit-holders must
arrange for a secure repository to curate any materials
that may be collected under the authority of the permit.
PERMIT
REPORTING PROCEDURES:
Generally, the deadline for submission of written reports to the
branch shall be four months after the completion of field work, unless
otherwise agreed to by the branch and the applicant during the
application review process.
Upon issuance of a heritage inspection permit for a site survey (inventory
or assessment), the following reporting procedures will generally apply:
- only temporary site numbers are to be used in the field - permanent
site numbers will not be assigned by the branch until completed site
inventory forms have been submitted;
- British Columbia Archaeological Site Inventory Forms must be submitted
to the branch, prior to or at the same time as the permit report,
for all sites recorded during the survey and should contain 1:50,000
scale NTS map inserts with site locations accurately plotted;
- permit reports submitted to the branch must be accompanied by 1:50,000
scale NTS map inserts with site locations accurately plotted if not
submitted with site forms;
- the provenience of all excavated and surface collected archaeological
materials must be recorded where possible.
Upon issuance of a heritage investigation permit for systematic data
recovery or extensive research excavations, the following recording
and reporting procedures will generally apply:
- establishment of horizontal base lines related to a permanent reference
point or datum;
- establishment of a permanent vertical datum from which to calculate
all depth measurements;
- preparation of an accurate site map delineating all reference points
and ground contours;
- use of a field journal to document all pertinent site information,
e.g., location of site map reference points, excavation unit selection
criteria, etc.;
- keep accurate records of artifact provenience, and natural and cultural
associations;
- record provenience for, and objective descriptions on, natural and
cultural matrices (aids such as Munsell soil colour charts should
be utilized);
- submission of updated site inventory forms with preliminary reports.
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