§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to protect buried archaeological treasures from farming practices which might disturb them. [36483]
§ Mr. MorleyThe objectives of our agri-environment schemes include conserving areas which demonstrate their history and to protect important features and major earthworks by measures such as low intensity grazing, scrub control and by converting cultivated land to pasture. A number of scheme options support those objectives.
In recognition of the threat to archaeological sites in intensively farmed landscapes, DEFRA has commissioned a research project from the Oxford Archaeological Unit to investigate the impact of arable management on buried archaeological sites. Their report, which is expected in the next few months, will contribute to the development of best practice guidelines for managing archaeological features in arable landscapes, while retaining land, where possible, in production.
These initiatives add to the existing legal protection for archaeological features that are formally recognised. Steps have also been taken to encourage the voluntary reporting of all archaeological finds.