Chapter 5: Cultural Resource Management
Chapter 5:
Cultural Resource Management
CHAPTER 5:
CULTURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
[Cover page summary statement.] The National Park Service will preserve and foster
appreciation of the cultural resources in its custody, and will demonstrate its
respect for the peoples traditionally associated with those resources, through
appropriate programs of research, planning, and stewardship.
Chapter 5: Cultural Resource Management
The National
Park Service is the steward of many of America’s most important cultural
resources. These resources are categorized as archeological resources, cultural
landscapes, ethnographic resources, historic and prehistoric structures, and
museum collections. The Service’s cultural resource management program involves:
Rresearch to identify, evaluate,
document, register, and establish basic information about cultural resources
and traditionally associated 3[1] peoples;
Pplanning to ensure that management
processes for making decisions and setting priorities integrate information
about cultural resources, and provide for cooperation, [MSOffice1]consultation, communication, and collaboration with outside
entities; and
Sstewardship to ensure that cultural
resources are preserved and protected, receive appropriate treatments
(including maintenance), and are made available for public understanding and
enjoyment.
The cultural
resource management policies of the National Park Service are derived from a
suite of historic preservation, environmental, and other laws, proclamations, Eexecutive orders, and regulations. A
comprehensive list can be found in the Cultural Resource
Management Handbook issued pursuant to
Director’s Order #28. Taken collectively, they provide the Service with the
authority and responsibility for managing cultural resources in every unit of
the national park system so that those resources may be preserved unimpaired
for future generations. Cultural resource management will be carried out in a
manner consistent with these legislative and regulatory provisions, and with
implementing policies and procedures such as the Secretary of the
Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation
(48 Federal Register (44716-740,
or 48 FR) 44716- 740), and
Standards and Guide lines for Federal Agency Historic Preservation Programs
Pursuant to the National Historic Preservation Act (63 FR 20497- 508).
Park
superintendents and appropriately qualified cultural resource professionals
will work together to carry out the Park Service’s cultural resource management program. Other NPS
staff and volunteers participating in cultural resource research, planning, and
stewardship activities will be supervised by full- performance- levelfully qualified cultural resource professionals
of the appropriate disciplines. Law enforcement professionals will consult with
full- performance-levelfully qualified cultural resource professionals of the appropriate
disciplines when investigating cultural resource crimes.
[MSOffice2]The Service will support its cultural resource professionals
in maintaining and improving their disciplinary knowledge and skills and in
promoting their professionalism through continuing education, graduate- level
courses, seminars, training, teaching, attendance at professional conferences,
and other programs sponsored by professional or scholarly institutions. NPS
personnel with cultural resource responsibilities will acquire and maintain the
knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to carry out those responsibilities.
All occupational groups in or associated with cultural resource research,
planning, and stewardship activities will complete the relevant cultural
resource competency requirements commensurate with their job and grade.
Park
superintendents and cultural resource professionals will ensure that research
about and stewardship of cultural resources are carried out only after adequate
planning and consultation, cooperation, and communication with interested or affected stakeholdersindividuals, groups, and other outside entities.
(See Decision- making Requirements
to Avoid Impairments 1.4.7. Also see NHPA [16 USC 470h- 4]; Secretary of the
Interior’s Professional Qualification Standards [48 FR 44738- 44739]; Employee
Training and Development Planning and Tracking Kit [1996])
5.1.1 National Park
Service Research
The National Park Service will
conduct a vigorous interdisciplinary program of research into the cultural
resources of each park. The principal goals of such research will be to:
Eensure a systematic, adequate, and
current information base representing the park’s cultural resources and
traditionally associated peoples, in support of planning, management, and
operations;
Eensure appropriate protection,
preservation, treat menttreatment, and interpretation of cultural resources, employing the
best current scholarship;
Ddevelop approaches for managing park
cultural and natural resources that ensure consideration of the views held by
traditionally associated peoples and others, as appropriate;by emphasizing
the principles of civic engagement including conservation through cooperation, consultation, and communication
Ccollect data on subsistence and
other consumptive uses of park resources in order to reach informed decisions; and
Ddevelop appropriate technologies and
methods for monitoring, protecting, preserving, conserving, [MSOffice3]and treating cultural resources.
Adequate research to support informed planning and
compliance with legal requirements will precede any final decisions about the
treatment of cultural resources, or about park operations, development, and
natural resource management activities that might affect cultural resources.
Research will be periodically updated to reflect changing issues, sources, and
methods. Research needs will be identified and justified in a park’s approved
resource management plan.
A written scope of work, research design, project
agreement, proposal, or other description of work to be performed will be
prepared and approved before any research is conducted. All archeological
research, whether for inventory, data recovery, or other purposes, must comply
with the Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 (ARPA), the
Antiquities Act, and the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
(NAGPRA), as applicable. The National Park Service will not take or allow any
action that reduces the research potential of cultural resources without first
performing an appropriate level of research, consultation, and documentation.
Because research involving physical intervention into cultural resources or the
removal of objects or specimens is a destructive process entailing an
irretrievable commitment of the resources, and often affecting traditional practices associated with the
resources, research in parks will employ non- destructivenondestructive methods to the maximum extent
feasible.
The features of sites, landscapes, and structures will be
left in place unless impracticable. Field data, objects, specimens, and
features of sites and structures retrieved for preservation during cultural
resource research and treatment projects, together with associated records and
reports, will be managed within the park museum collection stored in NPS or non-NPS repositories, as appropriate,
including repositories maintained by partners.
Research conducted by NPS personnel, contractors, and
cooperative researchers will be subjected to peer review both inside and
outside the Service, to ensure that it meets
professional standards, reflects current scholarship, and adheres to the
principles of conduct for the appropriate discipline. The data and knowledge
acquired through research will be recorded on permanent and durable (long- lived) media, documented in the appropriate Service- wideServicewide databases, and placed permanently in park museum and
library collections and park files. This information will be made widely
available, and be incorporated, as
appropriate, into park planning documents, exhibits, and interpretive programs.
As appropriate, information will be shared with proper state and tribal
historic preservation offices and certified local governments.
Certain research data may be withheld from public
disclosure to protect sensitive or confidential information about archeological,
historic, or other NPS resources when doing so would be consistent with FOIAthe Freedom of Information Act. In many circumstances, this
will allow the NPSPark Service to withhold information about ethnographic resources.
(See Park Planning
Processes 2.3; Studies and Collections 4.2; Confidentiality 5.2.3; Research
7.5.4; Native American Use 8.5. Also see 36 CFR PartParts 79 and 800; 43 CFR Parts 3, 7, and 10;
NHPA; Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Preservation
Planning [48 FR 44716- 720]; Secretary of the
Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Historical Documentation [48 FR 44728- 730]; Director’s Order #28: Cultural Resource Management;
Cultural Resource Management Handbook 28)
The National Park Service will promoteencourage and support relationships with individuals and organizations qualified
to perform research, and encourage them to direct their research toward park
management objectives and the broader contexts within which park resources
exist. The Park Service will encourage independent researchers to follow the
Secretary of the Interior’s standards and guidelines and those of the Park Service to the fullest extent
possible, and will require that the views of traditionally associated peoples
be fully considered.
Research that includes taking plants, fish, wildlife,
rocks, or minerals must comply with the permit requirements of 36 CFR 2. 5.2.5. Permits that would allow cultural resources to be
physically disturbed, or allow objects or specimens to be collected, will be
issued only when there is compelling evidence that the proposed research is
essential to significant research concerns, and that the purpose of the
research can be reasonably achieved only by using park resources. As
appropriate, permits may require researchers to provide for the long- term preservation and management of any recovered objects
and specimens and for their cataloging, together with any associated records,
in the NPS museum cataloging system. Independent researchers will be authorized
to conduct archeological research on park lands only through the issuance of an
ARPA or Antiquities Act permit by the appropriate NPS regional director. This
permitting authority cannot be further delegated. As appropriate, parks will
also issue other necessary permits, such as a special use permit. Archeological
research conducted by independent researchers must comply with NAGPRA,the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act when applicable.
NPS facilities, collections, and assistance will be made
available to qualified scholars conducting NPS- authorized
research, as long as park operations are not substantially impeded or park
resources adversely impacted thereby.
(See Independent
Studies 4.2.2; Consultation 5.2.1; Natural and Cultural Studies, Research, and
Collection Activities 8.10. Also see 43 CFR Parts 3, 7, and 10)
5.1.3 Identification and
Evaluation of Resources
The National Park Service will conduct surveys to identify and evaluate
the cultural resources of each park, assessing resources within their larger
cultural, chronological, and geographic contexts. The resulting inventories
will provide the substantive data required for (1) nominating resources to the
National Register of Historic Places; (2) general park planning and specific
proposals for preserving, protecting, conserving, and treating cultural resources;
(3) land acquisition, development, and maintenance activities; (4)
interpretation, education, and natural and cultural resource management
activities; and (5) compliance with legal requirements.
The Park Service will (1) maintain and expand the following
inventories about cultural resources in units of the national park system, (2)
enter information into appropriate related databases, and (3) develop an
integrated information system. The inventories include the following:
Aarcheological sites inventory for
historic and prehistoric archeological resources and the related Archeological
Sites Management Information System (ASMIS) database; , or its successor
Ccultural landscapes inventory of
historic designed landscapes, historic vernacular landscapes, ethnographic
landscapes, and historic sites, and the related Cultural Landscapes Automated Inventory Management System (CLAIMS(CLI) database;, or its successor
Ethnographic Resources Inventory (ERI) of
places, including sites, structures, objects, landscapes, and natural resources
with traditional cultural meaning and value to associated peoples and other
resource users;, or its successor
List of Classified Structures (LCS),
encompassing historic and prehistoric structures; and
National Catalog of Museum Objects,
encompassing all cultural objects, archival and manuscript materials, and
natural history specimens in NPS collections and the related automated version,
the Automated National Catalog System (ANCS+), or its successor).
(See Park Planning
Processes 2.3; Confidentiality 5.2.3. Also see Secretary of the Interior’s Standards
and Guidelines for Identification [48 FR 44720- 723];
Director’s Order #28; Cultural Resource Management Handbook 36 CFR Part 79)
5.1.3.2 Evaluation and
Categorization
Cultural resources will be
professionally evaluated and categorized to assist in management decisions
about their treatment and use. Cultural resources will be evaluated for
significance using National Register Criteria for Evaluation (36 CFR 60. 460.4), and those meeting the criteria will be nominated for
listing. Museum collections are inappropriate for listing and will not be
evaluated using these criteria. Some collections in their original structures
can be included as contributing elements to a listed structure. As appropriate,
cultural resources will be categorized using other management categories
established by the National Park Service and listed in the Cultural
Resource Management Handbook. Cultural
resource professionals will evaluate cultural resources in consultation with
the appropriate state and tribal historic preservation officers.
Ethnographically meaningful cultural and natural resources, including
traditional cultural properties, will be identified and evaluated in
consultation with peoples having traditional associations to park resources.
Examples of traditionally associated peoples include Acadians, African
Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans. (For editorial
convenience, in these Management Policies the term “Native Americans†includes American Indians,
Alaskan nNatives, native peoples of the Caribbean, native Hawaiians, and
other native Pacific islanders.) Some ethnographically meaningful resources do
not meet National Register Criteria for Evaluation, but will be inventoried in
consultation with traditionally associated peoples and considered in management
decisions about treatment and use.
(See Consultation
5.2.1. Also see Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for
Evaluation [48 FR 44723- 726])
5.1.3.2.1 National Register
Nomination
Park resources that appear to meet the criteria for the
National Register of Historic Places will be nominated— either
individually, as components of historic districts, or within multiple property
nominations— for listing by the Keeper of the National
Register. National historic sites, national historical parks, and other parks
significant primarily for their cultural resources are entered automatically in
the National Register upon establishment. However, nomination forms will be
prepared and submitted to document the qualifying and contributing features of
such parks and other NationalRegister-
National Register-eligible resources within them.
(Also see 36 CFR
Parts 60 and 63; Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for
Registration [48 FR 44726- 728]; National Register
Bulletins 16A and 16B [Guidelines for Completing National Register of Historic
Places Forms])
5.1.3.2.2 National Historic
Landmark Designation
Historic and cultural units of
the national park system are nationally significant by virtue of their
authorizing legislation or Ppresidential proclamation. National historic
landmark designations are appropriate for park cultural resources that meet Nnational historic landmark criteria
if the national significance of those resources is not adequately recognized in
the park’s authorizingenabling legislation or Ppresidential proclamation. Cultural parks may
warrant landmark designation as parts of larger areas encompassing resources
associated with their primary themes. Modified National Register forms will be
prepared and submitted to nominate such resources for landmark designation by
the Secretary of the Interior.
5.1.3.2.3 Nominations for World Heritage List Designation
ParkParks containing cultural propertiesfeatures believed to possess outstanding
universal value to humanity may qualify for placement on
the World
Heritage List designation.
Proposals for the nomination of such resources by the United States will be
prepared and submitted to document the case for this designation by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. under criteria described in the World Heritage Committee
Operational Guidelines and in accordance with the World Heritage Convention.
Before they can be nominated, all such properties must be assessed according to
World Heritage criteria, and before the United States can submit a nomination
to the World Heritage Committee, the site must first be included on the U.S.
Tentative List of Potential Future World Heritage Nominations.
Once an area is
designated a world heritage site, the Park Service will recognize the
designation in public information and interpretive programs. Where appropriate, park superintendents should use the park's
World Heritage status as a platform to promote sustainable tourism. [MSOffice4]Designation as
a World Heritage Site will not alter the purposes for which the park was
established, change the management requirements, reduce NPS jurisdiction over
the park, or otherwise cause unacceptable impacts to park values and purposes.
(See World
Heritage Sites 4.3.7. Also see 36 CFR Part 73)
Effective park stewardship requires informed decision- making about a park’s cultural resources. This is best
accomplished through a comprehensive planning process. Effective planning is
based on an understanding of what a park’s cultural resources are, and why
those resources are significant. To gain this understanding, the Park Service must obtain baseline data on the nature and types
of cultural resources, and their (1) distribution; (2)
condition; (3) significance; and (4) local, regional, and national contexts.
Cultural resource planning, and the resource evaluation process that is part of
it, will include consultation with cultural resource specialists and scholars
having relevant expertise; traditionally associated peoples; and other
stakeholders. Current scholarship and needs for research are considered in this
process, along with the park’s legislative history and other relevant
information.
Planning decisions will follow analysis of how proposals
might affect the values that make resources significant, and the consideration
of alternatives that might avoid or mitigate potential adverse effects.
Planning will always seek to avoid unacceptable [MSOffice5]harm to cultural resources, and consider the values of traditionally associated
groups. To ensure that approaches and alternatives for resource preservation and conservation have been identified and
considered, planning processes that could affect cultural resources must
include cultural resource specialists, traditionally associated peoples, and other stakeholdersothers, and provide them with appropriate notification about
opportunities to become involved.
The general management planning process will include goals
and strategies for research on, consultation about, and stewardship of cultural
resources, and for research on and consultation with traditionally associated
and other peoples. Planning for park operations, development, and natural
resource management activities will integrate relevant concerns and program
needs for identifying, evaluating, monitoring, protecting, preserving, conserving, and treating cultural resources.
Superintendents will ensure full consideration of the
park’s cultural resources and values in all proposals for operations,
development, and natural resource programs, including the management of
wilderness areas. When proposed undertakings may adversely affect national
historic sites, national battlefields, and other predominantly cultural units
of the national park system that were established in recognition of their
national historical significance, superintendents will provide opportunities
for the same level of review and consideration by the Advisory Council on
Historic Preservation and the Secretary of the Interior that the Advisory
Council’s regulations require for undertakings that may adversely affect
national historic landmarks (36 CFR 800. 10800.10).
Each park will prepare and periodically update cultural
resource components of the park’s management plans. Resource plans will define
andy program activities needed to identify, evaluate, manage,
monitor, protect, preserve, conserve, and treat the park’s cultural
resources, as well as provide for their enjoyment and understanding by the
public.
(See Decision- making Requirements to Avoid Impairments 1.4.7; Strategic
Planning 2.3.2; Implementation Planning 2.3.3. Also see Executive Order 13007;
Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Federal Agency
Historic Preservation Programs Pursuant to the National Historic Preservation
Act [63 FR 20496- 508]; Secretary of the Interior’s
Standards and Guidelines for Preservation Planning [48 FR 44716- 720]; Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the
Treatment of Historic Properties)
The National Park Service is
committed to the open and meaningful exchange of knowledge and ideas to enhance
(1) the public’s understanding of park resources and values, and the policies and plans that affect them;, and (2) the Service’s ability
to plan and manage the parks by learning from others. Open exchange requires
that the Park Service seek and employ ways to reach out to, and consult with, all those who have an interest in the parks.
Each park superintendent will communicate, cooperate, and consult with outside parties
having an interest in the park’s cultural resources or in proposed NPS actions
that might affect those resources, and provide them with opportunities to learn
about, and comment on, those resources and planned actions. Consultation may be
formal, as when it is required pursuant to NAGPRAthe Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act or Section 106 of the NHPANational Historic Preservation Act, or it may be informal when
there is not a specific statutory requirement. Consultation will be initiated,
as appropriate, with tribal, state, and local governments; state and tribal
historic preservation officers; the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation;
other interested federal agencies; traditionally associated peoples; present- day park neighbors; and other interested groups.
Consultations on proposed Park ServiceNPS actions will take place as soon
as practical, and in an appropriate forum that ensures, to the maximum extent
possible, effective cooperation, consultation,
and
communication and the identification of mutually acceptable alternatives. The
Service will establish and maintain continuing relationships with outside
parties to facilitate future collaboration, formal consultations, and the
ongoing informal exchange of views and information on cultural resource
matters.
SinceBecause national parks embody resources
and values of interest to a national audience, efforts to reach out and consult
must be national in scope. ButHowever, the Service will be especially
mindful of consulting with traditionally associated peoples— those whose cultural systems or ways
of life have an association with park resources and values that pre- datespredates establishment of the park. Traditionally associated
peoples may include park neighbors, traditional residents, and former residents
who remain attached to the park area despite having relocated. [MSOffice6]Examples of traditionally associated peoples include American Indians in the contiguous 48 states, Alaska Natives,
African Americans at Jean Lafitte, Asian Americans at Manzanar, and Hispanic
Americans at Tumacocori. In addition, there are other
individuals and groups with strong connections to the land through experiencing
a significant life event within or near a park unit. The Service must also be
sensitive to and carefully consider the views of those who have these powerful
associations.
[MSOffice7]In particular, it is essential to consult traditionally
associated peoples about:
Pproposed research on, and
stewardship of, cultural and natural resources with ethnographic meaning for
the groups;
Ddevelopment of park planning and
interpretive documents that may affect resources traditionally associated with
the groups;
Pproposed research that entails
collaborative study of the groups;
Iidentification, treatment, use, and
determination of affiliation of objects subject to NAGPRA;the Native
American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
Rrepatriation of Native American
cultural items or human remains based on requests by affiliated groups in
accordance with NAGPRA;the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
Pplanned excavations and proposed
responses to inadvertent discoveries of cultural resources that may be
culturally affiliated with the groups;
Oother proposed NPS actions that may
affect the treatment and use of, and access to, cultural and natural resources with known or potential
cultural meaning for the groups; and
Ddesignation of National Register, national historic landmark, and
world heritage sites.National Historic Landmark and World
Heritage Sites
Consultation with federally recognized American Indian
tribes will be on a government- to- government
basis. The Service will notify appropriate tribal authorities (such as tribal
historic preservation officers) about proposed actions when first conceived,
and by subsequently consulting their appointed representatives whenever
proposed actions may affect tribal interests, practices, and traditional
resources (such as places of religious value).
When engaging in the consultation process, group meetings may be held onlyare encouraged for the purpose of exchanging views and information, and to
solicit individual advice on proposed NPS actions. NPS may not hold meetings toobtaining individual viewpoints to facilitate the
development or modification of proposed NPS actions. The Park Service will give
appropriate consideration to concensus [MSOffice8]advice
presented to it when those recommendations have been developed independent of
the Park Service. The Service may not obtain consensus advice from a group that it
creates, controls, or manages unless the group is chartered pursuant to the Federal
Advisory Committee Act (FACA). FACAThis act does not apply to inter- governmentalintergovernmental meetings held exclusively
between NPS officials and elected officers ofofficials of
state, local, or tribal governments (or their designated employees with
authority to act on their behalf) acting in their official capacities, when the meetings relate to intergovernmental
responsibilities or administration.
(See Ethnographic
Resources 5.3.5.3. Also see ARPA; NAGPRA; NEPA; NHPA [16 USC 470f]; 36 CFR Part
800; 40 CFR Parts 1500- 1508; 41 CFR Part 101;, 43 CFR
Parts 7 and 10; Executive Memorandum on Government- toGovernmentto-Government Relations with Native American
Tribal Governments; Executive Order 13007; Executive Order 13175; 512
Department of the Interior Manual [DM] 2; Director’s Order #71: Relationships
with Indian Tribes; NPS Guide to the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Also see Director’s Order #75A: Civic Engagement and
Public Involvement.)
The National Park Service will
seek to establish mutually beneficial agreements with interested groups to
facilitate collaborative research, consultation, park planning, training, and
cooperative management approaches with respect to park cultural resources and
culturally important natural resources. The NPS goal of the NPS is to allow traditionally associated peoples to exercise
traditional cultural practices in parks to the extent allowable by law, and
consistent with the criteria listed in section 8. 2.8.2. To the extent this goal can be legally reached through
agreements, park superintendents should do so.
Whenever parks have cultural resources that are owned or managed by others,
agreements will clarify how the resources are to be managed. Agreements will
provide ways for periodically reviewing their effectiveness and making mutually
agreed- upon modifications, and for avoiding and
resolving disagreements and disputes. All agreements will conform to the
requirements of Director’s Order #20: Agreements.
(See Decision- making Requirements to Avoid Impairments 1.4.7;
Partnerships 1.9; Partnerships 4.1.4; Park Structures Owned or Managed by
Others 5.3.5.4.8; Submerged Cultural Resources 5.3.5.1.7; Native American Use
8.5; Consumptive Uses 8.9. Also see Executive Order 13007; 36 CFR 2.1)
Sensitive or confidential
information is sometimes acquired during consultations and during other
research, planning, and stewardship activities. Under certain circumstances,
and to the extent permitted by law, information about the specific location,
character, nature, ownership, or acquisition of cultural resources on park
lands will be withheld from public disclosure. If a question arises about
withholding information, and disclosure could result in a significant invasion
of privacy or a risk of harm to a cultural resource, the Park Service will consult the
provisions of ARPA (16 USC 470hh); the National Parks Omnibus Management Act
(16 USC 5937); and NHPA (16 USC 470w- 3) before making
a decision.
Under some conditions, the
Service may be required by law to disclose confidential information acquired
during consultations, public meetings, and other research, planning, and
stewardship activities, or in association with the acquisition of resources,
including museum collections. Before these activities occur, NPS staff and
authorized researchers will make every effort to inform affected parties that,
while the information they provide will not be shared voluntarily,
confidentiality cannot be guaranteed.
To the extent permitted by law, the Service will withhold
from public disclosure (1) information provided by individuals who wish the
information to remain confidential, and (2) the identities of individuals who
wish to remain anonymous and who are protected from release by exemption under FOIAthe Freedom of Information Act. In each instance, the Service
will document its decision to disseminate or withhold sensitive or confidential
information from public disclosure.
More detailed guidance on sensitive and confidential
information can be found in Director’s Order #66: The Freedom of Information
Act and Protectedthe Protection of Exempted Information; and the Museum
Handbook, Part III.
(See Managing
Information 1.7. Also see 43 CFR Part 2; 43 CFR 7.18; Privacy Act)
5.3.1 Protection and PreservationConserving [MSOffice9]of Cultural
Resources
The National Park Service will
employ the most effective concepts, techniques, and equipment to protect
cultural resources against theft, fire, vandalism, overuse, deterioration,
environmental impacts, and other threats, without compromising the integrity of
the resources.
5.3.1.1 Emergency
Management:
Measures to protect or rescue
cultural resources in the event of an emergency, disaster, or fire will be
developed as part of a park’s emergency operations and fire management planning
processes. Designated personnel will be trained to respond to all emergencies
in a manner that maximizes visitor and employee safety and the protection of
resources and property.
(See Emergency
Preparedness and Emergency Operations 8.2.5.2. Also see 36 CFR Part 78)
5.3.1.2 Fire Detection,
Suppression, and Post- fire Rehabilitation and
Protection
The NPSPark Service will take action to prevent or
minimize the impact of wildland, prescribed, and structural fires on cultural
resources, including the impact of suppression and rehabilitation activities.
In the preservationconservation [MSOffice10]of historic structures and museum and library collections,
every attempt will be made to comply with national building and fire codes.
When these cannot be met without significantly impairing a structure’s
integrity and character, the management and use of the structure will be
modified to minimize potential hazards, rather than modifying the structure itself.
Subject to the previous paragraph, when warranted by the
significance of a historic structure or a museum or library collection,
adequate and appropriate fire detection, warning, and suppression systems will be
installed. “Pre- fire
plans†will be developed for historic
structures and buildings housing museum or library collections, designed to identify the floor plan,
utilities, hazards, and areas and objects requiring special protection. This
information will be kept current and made available to local and park fire
personnel.
Park and local fire personnel will be advised of the
locations and characteristics of cultural resources threatened by fire, and of
any priorities for protecting them during any planned or unplanned fire
incident. At parks with cultural resources, park fire personnel will receive
cultural resource protection training. At parks that have wildland or
structural fire programsrisks, cultural resource management specialists will receive
fire prevention and suppression
training and, when appropriate,emergency
response training. Cultural resources management specialists who assist with
wildland fire programs will be certified for incident management positions
commensurate with their individual qualifications. responsibilities.
Smoking will not be permitted in spaces housing museum or
library collections, or in historic structures (except those used as residences
in which smoking is permitted by the park superintendent).
(See Fire
Management 4.5; Fire Management 6.3.9; Structural Fire Protection and
Suppression 9.1.8. Also see Director’s Order #18: Wildland Fire Management;
Director’s Order #58, and Reference Manual 58: Structural Fires)
5.3.1.3 Compensation for
Damages
The National Park System
Resource Protection Act authorizes the Park Service to take all necessary and appropriate steps to
recover costs and damages from any person who destroys, causes the loss of, or
injures any resource of the national park system. When such incidents involve
cultural resources, the Service will:
Pprevent or minimize the destruction
or loss of, or injury to, the cultural resource, or abate or minimize the
imminent risk of such destruction, loss, or injury;
Aassess and monitor damage to the
cultural resource;
Rrecover any and all costs associated
with the restoration or replacement of the cultural resource, or with the
acquisition of an equivalent resource;
Rrecover the value of any significant
loss of use of the cultural resource pending its restoration or replacement or
the acquisition of an equivalent, or the value of the cultural resource in the
event it cannot be restored or replaced; and
Rrecover any and all costs incurred
in responding to, assessing, and/ or monitoring damage
to the cultural resource.
(See Compensation
for Injuries to Natural Resources 4.1.6)
5.3.1.4 Environmental Monitoring and Control
When necessary to preserve a
historic structure or a museum collection, appropriate measures will be taken
to control relative humidity, temperature, light, and air quality. When museum
collections are housed in a historic structure, the needs of both the
collection and the structure will be identified and evaluated, weighing
relative rarity and significance, before environmental control measures are
introduced. The environmental conditions of all areas housing museum
collections will be regularly monitored, according to a schedule specific to
each condition, to determine whether appropriate levels of relative humidity,
temperature, and light are being maintained.
(See Air Quality
4.7.1. Also see Director’s Order #24: Museum Management)
The Park Service will follow an integrated pest management approach
in addressing pest problems (including invasive vegetation) related to cultural
resources. Pest occurrences will be dealt with on a case- by-
case basis. Available pest management methods, as
described in Director’s Order #77- 7, will be reviewed
to determine the most effective and lowest risk management strategy.
5.3.1.6 Carrying User Capacity
[MSOffice11]Park superintendents will set, enforce, and monitor carrying
capacities to limit public visitation to, or use of, cultural resources that
would be subject to adverse effects from unrestricted levels of visitation or
use. This will include (1) reviewingCultural
resources will be managed to protect them and to ensure their appropriate use.
Before setting any user capacities the superintendent will (1) review the park’s purpose; (2) analyzinge existing visitor use of, and related impacts to, the park’s cultural resources and traditional resource
users; (3) prescribinge indicators and specific standards for acceptable and
sustainable visitor use; and (4) identifying ways to address and monitor unacceptable impacts resulting
from overuse. Studies to gather basic data and make recommendations on setting,
enforcing, and monitoring carryinguser capacities for cultural resources will be conducted in
collaboration with cultural resource specialists representing the appropriate
disciplines as well as affected partners, communities, and tribes.
(See VisitorUser Carrying Capacity 8.2.1)
5.3.2 Physical Access for
Persons with Disabilities
The National Park Service will
provide persons with disabilities the highest feasible level of physical access
to historic properties that is reasonable, and is consistent with the
preservation of each property’s significant historical features and applicable law. Access modifications for persons with disabilities will
be designed and installed to least affect the features of a property that
contribute to its significance. Modifications to some features may be
acceptable in providing access, once a review of options for the highest level
of access has been completed. However, if it is determined that modification of
particular features would impair a property’s integrity and character in terms
of the Advisory Council’s regulations at 36 CFR 800. 9, such modifications will
not be made. To the extent possible, modifications for access will benefit the
greatest number of visitors, staff, and the public, and will be integrated with, or in proximity to, the primary path of travel for entrances and from parking
areas. In situations where access modifications cannot be made, alternative
methods of achieving program access will be adopted.
(See Access to
Interpretive and Educational Opportunities 7.5.1; Accessibility for Persons
with Disabilities 8.2.4; Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities 9.1.2;
Accessibility of Commercial Services 10.2.6.2. Also see Director’s Order #42:
Accessibility for Visitors with Disabilities)
5.3.3 Historic Property
Leases and Cooperative Agreements
The National Park Service may
lease or permit the use of a historic property through a lease or cooperative agreement, if such lease or cooperative agreement will ensure the
property’s preservation. Proposed uses must not unduly limit public
appreciation of the property; interfere with visitor use and enjoyment of the
park; or preclude use of the property for park administration, employee
residences, or other management purposes judged more appropriate or cost -effective.
[MSOffice12]Each lease will be competitively offered. The government will
receive at least fair market rental value, adjusted for investments required of
the lessee. The term of the lease will be the shortest time needed for the
proposed use, taking into account required lessee investments, the common
practice for the type of lease, possible future alternatives for the property,
and other relevant factors. No lease will exceed 50 years. As authorized by the
National Parks Omnibus Management Act (16 USC 1a- 2( k)), a lessee may use a
property to provide a commercial service if the service will be patronized by
park visitors only to a minor extent.
Cooperative agreements to maintain, repair, rehabilitate,
restore, or build upon a historic property can be entered into with state,
local, and tribal governments; other public entities; educational institutions;
and private non- profitnonprofit organizations.
If a lease or cooperative agreement requires or allows the
lessee or cooperator to maintain, repair, rehabilitate, restore, or build upon
the property, it will require the work be done in accordance with applicable
Secretary of the Interior’s standards and guidelines and other NPS policies,
guidelines, and standards.
(See 8.12: Leasing and Cooperative Agreements. Also see NHPA [16 USC 470h- 3]; 16 USC 460l- 22( a); Omnibus
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 1997 [16 USC 1g]; 36 CFR Part 18)
5.3.4 Stewardship of
Human Remains and Burials
Marked and unmarked prehistoric
and historic burial areas and graves will be identified, evaluated, and
protected. Every effort will be made to avoid impacting burial areas and graves
when planning park development and managing park operations. Such burial areas
and graves will not knowingly be disturbed or archeologically investigated
unless threatened with destruction.
The Service will consult with American Indian tribes, other
Native American groups, and other individuals and groups linked by demonstrable
ties of kinship or culture to potentially identifiable human remains when such
remains may be disturbed or are inadvertently encountered on park lands. Re- interment at the same park may be permitted, and may include
remains that may have been removed from lands now within the park.
Native American human remains and photographs of such
remains will not be exhibited. Drawings, renderings, or casts of such remains
may be exhibited with the consent of culturally affiliated Indian tribes and
native Hawaiian organizations. The exhibit of non- Native
American human remains, or photographs, drawings, renderings, or casts of such
remains, is allowed in consultation with traditionally associated peoples. The
Service may allow access to, and study, publication, and destructive analysis
of, human remains, but must consult with traditionally associated peoples and
consider their opinions and concerns before making decisions on appropriate
actions. In addition, such use of human remains will occur only with an
approved research proposal that describes why the information cannot be
obtained through other sources or analysis, and why the research is important
to the field of study and the general public.
(See Cultural
Resources 6.3.8; Consultation 7.5.5; Cemeteries and Burials 8.6.10. Also see
ARPA; NAGPRA; 36 CFR Part 79; 43 CFR Part 10)
5.3.5 Treatment of
Cultural Resources
The Park Service will provide for the long- term
preservationconservation [MSOffice13]of, public access to, and appreciation of, the features,
materials, and qualities contributing to the significance of cultural
resources. With some differences by type, cultural resources are subject to
several basic treatments, including (1) preservation in their existing states;
(2) rehabilitation to serve contemporary uses, consistent with their integrity
and character; and (3) restoration to earlier appearances by the removal of
later additions and replacement of missing elements. Decisions regarding which
treatments will best ensure the preservationconservation[MSOffice14] and public enjoyment of particular cultural resources will
be reached through the planning and compliance process, taking into account:
Tthe nature and significance of a
resource, and its condition and interpretive value;
Tthe research potential of the
resource;
Tthe level of intervention required
by treatment alternatives;
Tthe availability of data, and the
terms of any binding restrictions; and
Tthe concerns of traditionally
associated peoples and other stakeholders.interested
individuals and groups
Except for emergencies that threaten irreparable loss
without immediate action, no treatment project will be undertaken unless
supported by an approved planning document. appropriate to the proposed
action.
The preservation of cultural resources in their existing
states will always receive first consideration. Treatments entailing greater
intervention will not proceed without the consideration of interpretive
alternatives. The appearance and condition of resources before treatment, and
changes made during treatment, will be documented. Such documentation will be
shared with any appropriate state or tribal historic preservation office or
certified local government, and added to the park museum cataloging system.
Pending treatment decisions reached through the planning process, all resources
will be protected and preserved in their existing states.
As a basic principle, anything of historical appearance
that the National Park Service presents to the public in a park will be either
an authentic survival from the past, or an accurate representation of thatwhat once existinged there. Reconstructions and reproductions will be clearly
identified as such.
The Service will holistically approach the treatment of
related cultural resources in a park. All cultural resource and natural
resource values will be considered in defining specific treatment and
management goals. Research will be coordinated and sequenced so that decisions
are not made in isolation. Each proposed action will be evaluated to ensure
consistency or compatibility in the overall treatment of park resources. The
relative importance and relationship of all values will be weighed to identify
potential conflicts between and among resource preservation goals, park
management and operation goals, and park user goals. Conflicts will be
considered and resolved through the planning process, which will include any
consultation required by 16 USC 470f.
Although each resource type is most closely associated with
a particular discipline, an interdisciplinary approach is commonly needed to
properly define specific treatment and management goals for cultural resources.
Policies applicable to the various resource types follow.
(See Park
Management 1.4; Park Planning Processes 2.3; Planning 5.2; Cultural Resources
6.3.8. Also see NEPA; Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment
of Historic Properties)
5.3.5.1 Archeological
Resources
Archeological resources will be
managed in situ, unless the removal of artifacts or physical disturbance is
justified by research, consultation, preservation, protection, or interpretive
requirements. Preservation treatments will include proactive measures that
protect resources from vandalism and looting, and maintain or improve their
condition by limiting damage due to natural and human agents. Data recovery
actions will be taken only in the context of planning, consultation, and
appropriate decision- making. Preservation treatments
and data recovery activities will be conducted within the scope of an approved
research design. Archeological research will use non- destructivenondestructive methods of testing and analysis
wherever possible. The Park Service will incorporate information about
archeological resources into interpretive and, educational, and preservation, programs. Artifacts and specimens recovered from
archeological resources, along with associated records and reports, will be
maintained together in the park museum collection.
(Also see 36 CFR
Part 79; Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archeological
Documentation [48 FR 44734- 737]; Museum Handbook)
Archeological resources will be
maintained and preserved in a stable condition to prevent degradation and loss.
The condition of archeological resources will be documented, regularly
monitored, and evaluated against initial baseline data. Parks are encouraged to
enlist concerned local citizens in site stewardship programs to patrol and
monitor the condition of archeological resources. The preservation of
archeological components of cultural landscapes, structures, and ruins are also
subject to the treatment policies for cultural landscapes, historic and
prehistoric structures, and historic and prehistoric ruins.
Archeological resources subject
to erosion, slumping, subsidence, or other natural deterioration will be
stabilized using the least intrusive and destructive methods. The methods used
will protect natural resources and processes to the maximum extent feasible.
Stabilization will occur only after sufficient research demonstrates the likely
success of the proposed stabilizing action, and after existing conditions are
documented.
5.3.5.1.3 Rehabilitation,
Restoration, and Reconstruction
These terms are normally related
to the treatment of historic structures and cultural landscapes. The Park Service will not normally
undertake the rehabilitation, restoration, or reconstruction of archeological
resources or features. Archeological studies undertaken in conjunction with the
rehabilitation or restoration of cultural landscapes, structures, or ruins, or
with the reconstruction of obliterated cultural landscapes or missing
structures, will be guided by the treatment policies for archeological
resources, as well as those for the other associated resource types.
Archeological resources will be
protected against human agents of destruction and
deterioration whenever practicable.
Archeological resources subject to vandalism and looting
will be periodically monitored, and, if reasonable,
practicable, and [MSOffice15]appropriate, fencing, warning signs, remote- sensing alarms, and other protective measures will be
installed. Training and public education programs will be developed to make
park staff and the public aware of the value of the park’s archeological
resources, and the penalties for destroying them. For public safety reasons,
local citizens who are monitoring resources under site stewardship programs
will be instructed to report incidents of vandalism and looting to law
enforcement personnel for response.
(See Volunteers in
Parks 7.6.1; Shared Responsibilities 8.3.3)
5.3.5.1.5 Archeological Data
Recovery
Archeological data recovery is
permitted if justified by research or interpretation needs. Significant
archeological data that would otherwise be lost as a result of resource
treatment projects or uncontrollable degradation or destruction will be
recovered in accordance with appropriate research proposals and preserved in
park museum collections. Data will be recovered to mitigate the loss of
significant archeological data due to park development, but only after the following:
Tthe redesign, relocation, and
cancellation of the proposed development have all been considered and ruled out
as infeasible through the planning process; ,
Tthe park development has been
approved;, and
Tthe project has provided for data
recovery, cataloging, and the initial preservation of recovered collections.
Appropriate— and, when feasible, native— vegetation will be maintained when necessary to prevent
the erosion of prehistoric and historic earthworks, even when the historic
condition might have been bare earth. Because earthwork restorations and
reconstructions can obliterate surviving remains and are often difficult to
maintain, other means of representing and interpreting the original earthworks
will receive first consideration.
(See Management of
Native Plants and Animals 4.4.2; Management of Exotic Species 4.4.4)
5.3.5.1.7 Submerged Cultural
Resources
Historic shipwrecks and other
submerged cultural resources will be protected, to the extent permitted by law,
in the same manner as terrestrial archeological resources. Protection
activities involve inventory, evaluation, monitoring, interpretation, and
establishing partner
shipspartnerships to provide for the management of historic shipwrecks and
other submerged cultural resources in units of the national park system. The Park Service will not allow treasure hunting or commercial
salvage activities at or around historic shipwrecks or other submerged cultural
resources located within park boundaries unless legally obligated to do so.
Parks may provide recreational diving access to submerged cultural resources
that are not susceptible to damage or the removal of artifacts. The Service
will ensure that the activities of others in park waters do not adversely
affect submerged cultural resources or the surrounding natural environment. The
Service will consult with the owners of non- abandonednonabandoned historic shipwrecks, and enter
into written agreements with them to clarify how the shipwrecks will be managed
by the NPSPark Service. Shipwrecks owned by a state government pursuant to the
Abandoned Shipwreck Act of 1987 will be managed in accordance with the
Abandoned Shipwreck Act Guidelines (55 FR 50116- 145,
55 FR 51528, and 56 FR 7875).
(See Recreational
Activities 8.2.2. Also see 36 CFR Part 2; 485 DM 27; Director’s Order #4:
Diving Management)
The treatment of a cultural
landscape will preserve significant physical attributes, biotic systems, and
uses when those uses contribute to historical significance. Treatment decisions
will be based on a cultural landscape’s historical significance over time,
existing conditions, and use. Treatment decisions will consider both the
natural and built characteristics and features of a landscape, the dynamics
inherent in natural processes and continued use, and the concerns of
traditionally associated peoples.
The treatment implemented will be based on sound
preservation practices to enable long- term
preservation of a resource’s historic features, qualities, and materials. There
are three types of treatment for extant cultural landscapes: —preservation, rehabilitation,
and restoration.
(See Decision- making to Avoid Impairments 1.4.7. Also see Secretary of
the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with
Guidelines for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes)
A cultural landscape will be
preserved in its present condition if: That that condition allows for satisfactory protection, maintenance,
use, and interpretation; or Aanother treatment is warranted but cannot be
accomplished until some future time.
A cultural landscape may be
rehabilitated for contemporary use if:
Itit cannot adequately serve an
appropriate use in its present condition;, and
Rrehabilitation will retain its
essential features, and will not alter its integrity and character or conflict
with approved park management objectives.
A cultural landscape may be
restored to an earlier appearance if:
Aall changes after the proposed
restoration period have been professionally evaluated, and the significance of
those changes has been fully considered;,
Rrestoration is essential to public
understanding of the park’s cultural associations;,
sufficient data about that landscape’s earlier appearance exist to
enable its accurate restoration, and
Sufficient data about that landscape’s earlier appearance exist to
enable its accurate restoration; and Thethe disturbance or loss of
significant archeological resources is minimized and mitigated by data
recovery.
5.3.5.2.4 Reconstruction of
Obliterated Landscapes
No matter how well conceived or
executed, reconstructions are contemporary interpretations of the past, rather than authentic survivals from it. The National Park
Service will not reconstruct an obliterated cultural landscape unless:
Tthere is no alternative that would
accomplish the park’s interpretive mission; ,
Ssufficient data exist to enable its
accurate reconstruction, based on the duplication of
historic features substantiated by documentary or physical evidence, rather than on conjectural designs or features from other
landscapes;,
Rreconstruction will occur in the
original location;,
Tthe disturbance or loss of
significant archeological resources is minimized and mitigated by data recovery;, and
Rreconstruction is approved by the NPS Director.
A landscape will not be reconstructed to appear damaged or
ruined. General representations of typical landscapes will not be attempted.
5.3.5.2.5 Biotic Cultural
Resources.
Biotic cultural resources, which
include plant and animal communities associated with the significance of a
cultural landscape, will be duly considered in treatment and management. The
cultural resource and natural resource components of the park’s resource
management plan will jointly identify acceptable plans for the management and
treatment of biotic cultural resources. The treatment and management of biotic
cultural resources will anticipate and plan for the natural and human- induced processes of change. The degree to which change
contributes to or compromises the historic character of a cultural landscape,
and the way in which natural cycles influence the ecological processes within a
landscape, will both be understood before any major treatment is undertaken.
Treatment and management of a cultural landscape will establish acceptable parameters
for change, and manage the biotic resources within those parameters.
(See Maintenance
of Altered Plant Communities 4.4.2.5)
5.3.5.2.6 Land Use and
Ethnographic Value
Many cultural landscapes are
significant because of their historic land use and practices. When land use is
a primary reason for the significance of a landscape, the objective of
treatment will be to balance the perpetuation of use with the retention of the
tangible evidence that represents its history. The variety and arrangement of
cultural and natural features in a landscape often have sacred or other
continuing importance in the ethnic histories and cultural vigor of associated
peoples. These features and their past and present- day
uses will be identified, and the beliefs, attitudes, practices, traditions, and
values of traditionally associated peoples will be considered in any treatment
decisions.
Contemporary use of a cultural landscape is appropriate if
it:
Ddoes not adversely affect
significant landscape characteristics and features;, and
Eeither follows the historic use or
does not impede public appreciation of it.
All uses of cultural landscapes are subject to legal
requirements, policy, guidelines, and standards for natural and cultural
resource preservation, public safety, and special park uses.
Contemporary alterations and
additions to a cultural landscape must not radically change, obscure, or
destroy its significant spatial organization, materials, and features. New
buildings, structures, landscape features, and utilities may be constructed in
a cultural landscape if:
Eexisting structures and improvements
do not meet essential management needs; ,
Nnew construction is designed and
sited to preserve the landscape’s integrity and historic character;, and
Unlessthe alteration,
addition, or related new
construction, unless associated with an approved
restoration or reconstruction, the alterations, additions, or related new construction is differentiated from, yet
compatible with, the landscape’s historic character.
New additions will meet the Secretary of the
Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.
5.3.5.3 Ethnographic
Resources
Park ethnographic resources are the cultural and natural
features of a park that are of traditional significance to traditionally
associated peoples. These peoples are the contemporary park neighbors and
ethnic or occupational communities that have been associated with a park for
two or more generations (40 years), and whose interests in the park’s resources
began prior tobefore the park’s establishment. Living peoples of many cultural
backgrounds— [MSOffice16]American Indians, Inuit (Eskimos), Native Hawaiians, African
Americans, Hispanics, Chinese Americans, Euro- Americans, and farmers,
ranchers, and fishermen— may have a traditional association with a particular park.
Traditionally
associated peoples generally differ as a group from other park visitors in that
they typically assign significance to ethnographic resources— places closely linked with their own sense of purpose,
existence as a community, and development as ethnically distinctive peoples.
These places may be in urban or rural parks, and may support ceremonial
activities or represent birthplaces of significant individuals, group origin
sites, migration routes, or harvesting or collecting places. WhileAlthough these places have historic attributes that are of great importance to the
group, they may not necessarily have a direct association with the reason the
park was established, or be appropriate as a topic of general public interest.
Some ethnographic resources might also be traditional cultural properties. A
traditional cultural property is onea property that is eligible for inclusion
in the National Register of Historic Places because of its association with the cultural practices or beliefs of a living community that
are (1) rooted in that community’s history, and (2) important in maintaining
the continuing cultural identity of the community.
The Service’s
primary interest in these places stems from its responsibilities under
Tthe NPS Organic Act — to conserve the natural and historic objects within
parks unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations;
NHPAthe National
Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) — to preserve, conserve, and
encourage the continuation of the diverse traditional prehistoric, historic,
ethnic, and folk cultural traditions that underlie and are a living expression
of our American heritage;
the
American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) — to protect and preserve for American Indians access to
sites, use and possession of sacred objects, and the freedom to worship through
ceremonials and traditional rites;
ARPAthe
Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) — to secure, for the present and
future benefit of the American people, the protection of archeological
resources and sites whichthat are on public lands; and
NEPAthe National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) — to preserve important historic, cultural, and natural
aspects of our national heritage; and
Executive Order 13007 —
to (1) accommodate access to and ceremonial use of Indian sacred sites by
Indian religious practitioners and (2) avoid adversely affecting the physical
integrity of such sacred sites.
The Service
must therefore be respectful of these ethnographic resources, and carefully
consider the effects that NPS actions may have on them. When religious issues
are evident, the Service must also consider constraints imposed on federal
agency actions by the fFirst and fFourteenth aAmendments to the U. S.
Constitution.
The National
Park Service will adopt a comprehensive approach that considers parks and
traditionally associated and other peoples as interrelated members of an
ecosystem. As an aid to appreciating the diverse human heritage and associated
resources that characterize the national park system, the Service will identify
the present- day peoples whose cultural practices and
identities were, and often still are, closely associated with each park’s
cultural and natural resources.
ANILCAThe Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act recognizes the importance of
maintaining the Alaska Native culturecultures and
rural lifestyles, and contains several provisions that authorize activities
by the NPSPark Service that would assist in the cultural preservation of Alaska
Native communities and rural lifestyles. For many rural Alaskans, the
land and the way of life are inseparable. The Service will explore
opportunities in Alaska to forge a mutually beneficial relationship between
Alaska Natives, rural residents, and the NPSPark Service. In Alaska and elsewhere, the
Service will try to strengthen the ability of traditional and indigenous
peoples to perpetuate their culture and to enrich the parks with traditional
knowledge and a deeper sense of place.
Ethnographic
information will be collected through collaborative research that recognizes
the sensitive nature of such information. Cultural anthropologists/ ethnographers will document the meanings that
traditionally associated groups assign to traditional natural and cultural
resources and the landscapes they form. The park’s ethnography file will
include this information, as well as data on the traditional management
practices and knowledge systems that affect resource uses, and the short- and long- term
effects of use on the resources.
(See Confidentiality 5.2.3. Also see Director’s Order #29:
Ethnography Program)
5.3.5.3.1 Resource Access and Use
Consistent with the requirements of the Organic Act, NHPA,
AIRFA, ARPA, NEPA, and Executive Order 13007 cited in section 5. 3. 5. 35.3.5.3 above, the Service will strive to allow American Indians
and other traditionally associated peoples access to, and use of, ethnographic
resources. Continued access to and use of ethnographic resources is often
essential to the survival of family, community, or regional cultural systems,
including patterns of belief and sociocultural and religious life. However, the
Service may not allow access and use if it would violate the criteria listed in
section 8.2. 8.1.
The Service
generally supports traditional access and use, and is considering policy and
regulatory revisions that will clarify when reasonable accommodations can be
made under NPS authorities to allow greater access and use. Park
superintendents may reasonably control the times when, and the places where,
specific groups may have exclusive access to particular areas of a park.
With regard
to consumptive use of park resources, current NPS policy is reflected in
regulations published at 36 CFR 2.1. These regulations allow superintendents to
designate certain fruits, berries, nuts, or unoccupied seashells whichthat may be gathered by hand for personal use or consumption if
it will not adversely affect park wildlife or the reproductive potential of a
plant species, or otherwise adversely affect park resources. The regulations do
not authorize the taking, use, or possession of fish, wildlife, or plants for
ceremonial or religious purposes, except where specifically authorized by Ffederal statute or treaty rights, or
where hunting, trapping, or fishing are otherwise allowed. These regulations
are currently under review, and NPS policy is evolving in this area.
Regulations
addressing traditional subsistence uses that are authorized in Alaska by ANILCAthe Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act are published at 36 CFR Part
13. Some park- specific enabling acts (e. g., Big Cypress National Preserve and Kaloka- Honokohau National Historical Park) allow subsistence or
other traditional uses of park resources.
(See Native American Use 8.5; Special Park Uses 8.6;
Collecting Natural Products 8.8; Consumptive Uses 8.9)
The National Park Service acknowledges that American Indian
tribes, including native Alaskans, treat specific places containing certain
natural and cultural resources as sacred places having established religious
meaning, and as locales of private ceremonial activities. Consistent with
Executive Order 13007, the Service will, to the extent practicable, accommodate
access to and ceremonial use of Indian sacred sites by religious practitioners
from recognized American Indian and Alaskan nNative tribes, and avoid adversely affecting the physical
integrity of such sacred sites.
In
consultation with the appropriate groups, the Service will develop a record
about such places, and identify any treatments preferred by the groups. This
information will alert superintendents and planners to the potential presence
of sensitive areas, and will be kept confidential to the extent permitted by
law. The Service will collaborate with affected groups to prepare mutually
agreeable strategies for providing access to ordinarily gated or otherwise- inaccessible locales, and for enhancing the likelihood of
privacy during religious ceremonies. Any strategies that are developed must comply with constitutional and other legal
requirements. To the extent feasible and allowable by law, accommodations will
also be made for access to, and the
use of, sacred places when interest is
expressed by other traditionally associated peoples, especially native
Hawaiians and other Pacific islanders, and by American Indian peoples and
others who often have a long- standing connection and
identity with a particular park or resource.
Various
ethnic groups, local groups with recently developed ties to resources in
neighboring parks, and visitors to family and national cemeteries and national
memorials also might use park resources for traditional or individual religious
ceremonies. Mutually acceptable agreements may be negotiated with known groups
to provide access to, and the use of, such places, consistent with constitutional and other
legal constraints.
(See Confidentiality 5.2.3; Resource Access and Use
5.3.5.3.1; Native American Use 8.5; First Amendment Activities 8.6.3. Also see
Director’s Orders #66: The Freedom of Information Act and Protected Resourcethe Protection of Exempted Information, and #71B: Sacred
Sites; NHPA [16 USC 470w- 3]; Executive Order 13007;
512 DM 3)
The Park
Service will
maintain a program of professional cultural anthropological/ ethnographic
research, that is designed to provide NPS managers with information about
relationships between park resources and associated peoples. Research will be
undertaken in cooperation with associated peoples in an interdisciplinary
manner whenever reasonable, especially in studies of natural resource use and
ethnographic landscapes. Research findings will be used to inform planning,
cultural, and natural resource management decision- making, andas well as for interpretation, as well as and to help managers meet responsibilities to associated
peoples and other stakeholders in the outcomes of NPS decisions. Information
required for an ethnographic resource inventory will be drawn from ethnographic
research reports to the fullest extent possible.
Collaborative
research dealing with recent or contemporary cultural systems and the resources
of park- associated peoples will involve the groups in
the design and implementation of the research and the review of research
findings to the fullest possible extent. The Service will provide individuals
or groups involved with, or directly affected by, the research with copies or summaries of the reports, as
appropriate.
(See Park Planning Processes 2.3; Studies and Collections
4.2; Consultation 7.5.5; Native American Use 8.5. Also see Secretary of the
Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties with Guidelines
for the Treatment of Cultural Landscapes)
5.3.5.4 Historic and Prehistoric Structures
The treatment of historic and prehistoric structures will
be based on sound preservation practice to enable the long- term
preservation of a structure’s historic features, materials, and qualities.
There are three types of treatment for extant structures: —preservation, rehabilitation,
and restoration.
(Also see Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treat mentTreatment of Historic Properties)
A structure will be preserved in its present condition if:
Tthat condition allows for
satisfactory protection, maintenance, use, and interpretation;, or
Aanother treatment is warranted but
cannot be accomplished until some future time.
A historic structure may be rehabilitated (rehabilitation
does not apply to prehistoric structures) for contemporary use if:
Itit cannot adequately serve an
appropriate use in its present condition;, and
Rrehabilitation will retain its
essential features and will not alter its integrity and character or conflict
with approved park management objectives.
A structure may be restored to an earlier appearance if:
Aall changes after the proposed
restoration period have been professionally evaluated, and the significance of
those changes has been fully considered;,
Rrestoration is essential to public
understanding of the park’s cultural associations;,
Ssufficient data about that
structure’s earlier appearance exist to enable its accurate restoration;, and
Tthe disturbance or loss of
significant archeological resources is minimized and mitigated by data
recovery.
5.3.5.4.4 Reconstruction of Missing Structures
No matter how well conceived or executed, reconstructions
are contemporary interpretations of the past rather than authentic survivals
from it. The National Park Service will not reconstruct a missing structure
unless:
Tthere is no alternative that would
accomplish the park’s interpretive mission;,
Ssufficient data exist to enable its
accurate reconstruction based on the duplication of historic features
substantiated by documentary or physical evidence, rather than on conjectural designs or features from other
structures;,
Rreconstruction will occur in the
original location The, and the disturbance or loss of significant archeological resources
is minimized and mitigated by data recovery;, and
Rreconstruction is approved by the NPS Director.
A structure
will not be reconstructed to appear damaged or ruined. Generalized
representations of typical structures will not be attempted.
(See Environmental Monitoring and Control 5.3.1.4; Physical
Access for Persons with Disabilities 5.3.2; Historic and Prehistoric Ruins
5.3.5.4.10)
5.3.5.4.5 Movement of Historic Structure Structures
Proposals for moving historic structures will consider the
effects of movement on the structures, their present environments, their
proposed environments, and the archeological research value of the structures
and their sites. No historic structure will be moved if its preservation would
be adversely affected, or until the appropriate recovery of significant
archeological data has occurred. Prehistoric structures will not be moved.
A nationally
significant historic structure may be moved only if:
Itit cannot practically be preservedconserved[MSOffice17] on its present site;, or
Tthe move constitutes a return to a
previous his torichistoric location, and the previous move and present location are
not important to the structure’s significance.
A historic
structure of less- than- national
significance may be moved if:
Itit cannot practically be preserved
on its present site;, or
Iits present location is not
important to its significance, and its relocation is essential to public
understanding of the park’s cultural associations.
In moving a
historic structure, every effort will be made to reestablish its historic
orientation, immediate setting, and general relationship to its environment.
The Park Service will not acquire
historic structures for relocation to parks.
In preference to new construction, every reasonable
consideration will be given to using historic structures for park purposes
compatible with their preservation and public appreciation. Additions may be
made to historic structures when essential to their continued use, and when new
construction will not destroy historic materials, features, and spatial
relationships that characterize the structure. Structural additions will
harmonize in size, scale, proportion, and materials with, but be readily
distinguishable from, the older work, and will not intrude upon the historic
scene. New additions will meet the Secretary of the
Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.
In those
areas of parks managed for the preservation, protection, and interpretation of
cultural resources and their settings, new structures, landscape features, and
utilities will be constructed only if:
Eexisting structures and improvements
do not meet essential park management needs;, and
Nnew construction is designed and
sited to preserve the integrity and character of the area.
Unless
associated with an approved restoration or reconstruction, all alterations,
additions, or related new construction will be differentiated from, yet compatible with, the historic character of the structure.
(See Rehabilitation 5.3.5.4.2; Use of Historic Structures
5.3.5.4.7; Adaptive Use 9.1.1.4. Also see Executive Order 13006; NHPA)
5.3.5.4.7 Use of Historic Structures
NHPAThe National Historic Preservation Act
(NHPA) (16
USC 470h- 2( a)( 1)) and Executive Order 13006 require each federal agency—
prior to acquiring, constructing, or leasing buildings—
to use, to the maximum extent feasible, historic
properties available to it,
whenever operationally appropriate and economically prudent. The NHPA also requires each agency to implement alternatives
for the adaptive use of historic properties it owns, if that will help ensure the properties’ preservation.
Therefore, compatible uses for structures will be found whenever possible. This
policy will help prevent the accelerated deterioration of historic structures
due to neglect and vandalism. Unused significant historic structures should be
stabilized and protected through appropriate measures, such as “mothballing,â€
until long- term decisions are made through the
planning process.
All uses of
historic structures are subject to preservation and public safety requirements.
No administrative or public use will be permitted that would threaten the
stability or character of a structure, the museum objects within it, or the
safety of its users, or that would entail alterations significantly
compromising its integrity.
(See Fire Detection, Suppression, and Post- fire Rehabilitation and Protection 5.3.1.2; Physical
Access for Persons with Disabilities 5.3.2; Adaptive Use 9.1.1.3; Energy
Management 9.1.7; Historic Structures 9.4.3.3)
5.3.5.4.8 Park Structures Owned or Managed by Others
StructuresPark structures and related property owned or
managed by others will be managed in accordance with NPS policies, guidelines,
and standards to the extent permitted by the Service’s interest. This includes
structures and property owned but not occupied by the Service, and structures
and property owned by others in which the Service has a less- than- fee interest or plays a
major management or preservation role. Interests acquired or retained by the
Service will enable the application of this policy.
(See Land Protection Plans 3.3; Historic Property Leases
and Cooperative Agreements 5.3.3; Historic Properties 10.2.2.3)
5.3.5.4.9 Damaged or Destroyed Historic Structures
Historic structures damaged or destroyed by fire, storm,
earthquake, war, or any other accident may be preserved as ruins; be removed;
or be rehabilitated, restored, or reconstructed in accordance with these
policies.
5.3.5.4.10 Historic and Prehistoric Ruins
The stabilization of historic and prehistoric ruins will be
preceded by studies leading to the recovery of any data that would be affected
by stabilization work. Ruins and related features on unexcavated archeological
sites will be stabilized only to the extent necessary to preserve research
values or to arrest structural deterioration, recognizing that it is preferable
to preserve archeological sites in situ than to excavate them. Archeological
ruins to be exhibited will not be excavated until consultation has occurred
with traditionally associated peoples, and adequate provisions are made for data recovery and
stabilization. Structures will not be deliberately reduced to ruins, and
missing structures will not be reconstructed to appear damaged or ruined.
The Service will collect, protect, preserve, provide access
to, and use objects, specimens, and archival and manuscript collections (henceforth
referred to collectively as “collections,†or individually as “itemsâ€) in the
disciplines of archeology, ethnography, history, biology, geology, and
paleontology, to aid understanding among park
visitors, and to advance knowledge in the humanities and sciences. As
appropriate, the Service will consult with culturally affiliated or
traditionally associated peoples before treating or reproducing items in NPS
collections that are subject to NAGPRA. the Native
American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
An item in a museum collection will be preserved in its
present condition through ongoing preventive care if:
Tthat condition is satisfactory for
exhibit or research;, or
Aanother treatment is warranted, but it cannot be accomplished until some future time.
An item will
be stabilized if:
Ppreventive measures are insufficient
to reduce deterioration to a tolerable level;, or
Tthe item is so fragile that it will
be endangered under any circumstances.
Active
conservation treatment (intervention) will be minimized to reduce the
possibility of compromising the item’s integrity. All active treatment will be
documented.
An item in a museum collection may be restored to an
earlier appearance if:
Rrestoration is required for exhibit
or research purposes;,
Ssufficient data about that item’s
earlier appearance exist to enable its accurate restoration;, and
Rrestoration will not modify that
item’s known original character.
Restoration
will be accomplished using the techniques and materials that least modify the
item and in such a manner that the materials can be removed at a later time
with minimal adverse effect. Restored areas will be distinguishable from
original material, and be documented. Restoration
will take into account the possible importance of preserving signs of wear,
damage, and former maintenance, andas well as other historical and scientific
evidence.
Items needed for interpretive and educational presentations
will be reproduced for such use when the originals are (1) unavailable;, or (2) would be subject to
undue deterioration or loss;, or (3) are otherwise inappropriate for exhibit. If an
object is inappropriate for exhibit because of its religious or spiritual
significance to a traditionally associated people, it will be reproduced only
after consultation with such people.
5.3.5.5.4 Acquisition, Management, and Disposition
Collections and related documentation essential to
achieving the purposes and objectives of parks will be acquired and maintained
in accordance with approved scope of collection statements for each park. When
museum objects, specimens, or archival documents become available and fall
within a park’s approved scope of collection statement, every reasonable effort
will be made to acquire them, if they can be managed and made accessible according to
Service standards.
Archeological
objects systematically collected within a park, and natural history specimens
systematically collected within a park for exhibit or permanent retention, will
be managed as part of the park’s museum collection. The management and care of
museum collections will be addressed at all appropriate levels of planning.
Requisite levels of care will be established through the interdisciplinary
efforts of qualified professionals.
Museum
collections will be acquired and disposed of in conformance with legal
authorizations and current NPS procedures. The National Park Service will
acquire only collections having legal and ethical pedigrees. Each park will
maintain complete and current accession records to establish the basis for
legal custody of the collections in its possession, including intellectual
property rights when acquired. Each park will prepare museum catalog records to
record basic property management data and other documentary information about
the park’s museum collection. Collections will be inventoried in accordance
with current procedures. Archeological, cultural landscape, ethnographic,
historic and prehistoric structure, historic furnishings, natural resource, and
other projects that generate collections for parks will provide for cataloging
and initial preservation of those collections in the project budget.
The Service
may cooperate with qualified entities in the management, use, and exhibition of
museum collections, and may loan items to, or borrow items from, such entities for approved purposes. The Service may de- accession items using means authorized in the Museum Act
and NAGPRAthe Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
Interested
persons will be permitted to inspect and study NPS museum collections and
records in accordance with standards for the preservation and use of
collections, and subject to laws and policies regarding the confidentiality of
resource data. At cost, copies of documents may be provided.
(See Natural Resource Collections 4.2.3; Confidentiality
5.2.3; Fire Detection, Suppression, and Post- fire
Rehabilitation and Protection 5.3.1.2; Environmental Monitoring and Control
5.3.1.4; Consultation 7.5.5; Special Park Uses 8.6; Museum Collections
Management Facilities 9.4.2. Also see 16 USC 18f; 43 USC 1460; 36 CFR Part 79;
43 CFR Part 10; and Museum Handbook)
5.3.5.5.5
Historic Furnishings
When historic furnishings are present in their original
arrangement in a historic structure, every effort will be made to preserve them
as an entity. Such historic furnishings will not be moved or replaced unless
required for their protection or repair, or unless the structure is designated
for another use in an approved planning document. The original arrangement of
historic furnishings will be properly documented. A structure may be refurnished
in whole or in part if:
Aall changes after the proposed
refurnishing period have been professionally evaluated, and their significance
has been fully considered;,
Aa planning process has
demonstrated that refurnishing is essential to public understanding of the
park’s cultural associations;, and
Ssufficient evidence of the design
and placement of the structure’s furnishings exists to enable its accurate
refurnishing without reliance on evidence from comparable structures.
Generalized
representations of typical interiors will not be attempted except in exhibit
contexts that make their representative nature obvious. Reproductions may be
used in place of historic furnishings, but only when photographic evidence or
prototypes exist to ensure the accurate re- creation of
historic pieces.
(See Park Planning Processes 2.3; Nonpersonal Services
7.3.2)
5.3.5.5.6
Archives and Manuscripts
Archival and manuscript collections are museum collections,
and will be preserved, conserved, [MSOffice18]arranged, cataloged, and described in finding aids. They
will be maintained and used in ways that preserve the collections and their
context (provenance and original order) intact while providing controlled
access. With few legal exemptions, the Park Service will make archives and manuscripts available to
researchers. Electronic documents that are to be preserved in archival and
manuscript collections will be migrated so that their information remains
accessible.
All
documentation associated with natural and cultural resource studies and other
resource management actions will be retained in the park’s museum collection
for use in managing park resources over time. Parks will retain notes or copies
of records significant to their administrative histories when they periodically
transfer their official records to federal record centers.
(See Confidentiality 5.2.35.2.3. Also see Director’s Order #66: FOIA
and the Protection of Exempted Information)
3[1] 1 For purposes of these Management Policies, social/ cultural
entities such as tribes, communities, and kinship units are “traditionally
associated†with a particular park when
the entity regards the park’s resources as essential
to its development and continued identity as a culturally distinct people; and
the association has endured for at least
two generations (40 years); and
the association began prior to the
establishment of the park.
See “Evaluation and Categorization†5.1.3.2; and “Ethnographic Resources†in the Cultural Resource Management Handbook.
[MSOffice1]Cooperation clearly implies giving local interests a controlling influence over decisions that must be made in the national interest. When local interests are contrary to the national interests, cooperating with them would be unlawful.
[MSOffice2]Re-instate this important declaration of support for obtaining, increasing, and maintaining strong professional qualifications. Cultural resources their preservation problems are complex and diverse, requiring the use of highly detailed expertise in many different disciplines. Deletion of this provision will lead to a slide toward use of the least qualified and least costly employees, with deleterious results for the resources.
[MSOffice3]As applied specifically to certain categories of cultural resources, such as historic buildings, museum objects, and library and archive collections, “conservation†has a meaning that it redundant with the word that follows: “treatment.†In view of the facts that the proposed usage here is entirely redundant, and that in other places the word clearly weakens the preservation standard, it is recommended that “conservation†and “conserving†be deleted here and throughout the Management Policies.
[MSOffice4]This proposed language lacks definition and context. If used, it should be in Chapter 8, Use of the Parks, and it must be given proper definition and limitation.
[MSOffice5]The proposed wording would actually allow planners to initiate a project with the intention of causing harm to a resource. Even when the planning outcome amounts to some degree of harm, planners should always have done their work seeking to avoid the harm.
[MSOffice6]Re-insert these examples that are very helpful in identifying groups that are genuinely traditionally associated.
[MSOffice7]“A significant life event†is an unworkably vague and inclusive standard that could extend to having a honeymoon in a park, having a heart attack, meeting a bear on a trail, seeing the Milky Way for the first time, or seeing for the first time the true majesty of the Grand Canyon. Especially when combined with the deletion of the helpful examples just before, this appears to place recent and harmful users of park lands on an equal footing with tribes whose ancestors have used the park lands since time immemorial. This makes it a very pernicious change.
[MSOffice8]Correct spelling is consensus.
[MSOffice9]Re-insert “preservation.†Regardless of assertions that “protection, preservation, and conservation†are interchangeable, they are not. This proposed usage of “conserving†in connection with “protection†is particularly inappropriate.
[MSOffice10]Re-insert “preservation.â€
[MSOffice11]Re-insert the deleted language. The NPS is required by law to set, enforce, and monitor user capacities, and the proposed weaker language does not meet that requirement.
[MSOffice12]Re-insert a requirement for competition, without which there may be monetary losses and a poorer selection of alternative uses.
[MSOffice13]Re-insert “preservation.â€
[MSOffice14]Re-insert “preservation.â€
[MSOffice15]This proposed new language is unnecessary and can only have the effect of reducing the degree of protection of resources.
[MSOffice16]Re-insert the deleted list of examples that help managers to distinguish genuinely traditionally associated peoples from spurious claimants to that status.
[MSOffice17]Re-insert “preserved.â€
[MSOffice18]The persons who inserted “conserved†appear unaware of what the word means when applied to archives and manuscripts. Not all archival and manuscript collections actually require conservation. In this instance, those who have chosen a word they believe to be weaker than “preservation†have inadvertently bound themselves to a large and expensive obligation.
