Who pays for the archaeological work in a redevelopment project?
An excavation project usually entails time spent on initial research and evaluation, the actual excavation and on-site recording, finds analysis and conservation and preparing a report of some nature for publication. Someone has to bear these costs, a large chunk of which will be the wages of the archaeologists involved. More often than not the developer bears the cost. Currently, the rationale is that as it is the developer’s new building works which will destroy the archaeological remains, then the cost of ensuring that the evidence is excavated and recorded first, should lie with the developer.
