National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 - Effects of The NHPA

Effects of The NHPA

The National Historic Preservation Act has led to major changes in the employment trends in historic preservation fields. Archaeologists, historians, historic architects, and others have been employed in vast numbers in the field of cultural resource management (CRM). Cultural resource management is an umbrella term which encompasses archaeology, historic preservation and other disciplines when employed for the purposes of compliance with NHPA and other federal and state-mandated historic preservation laws.

Prior to the passage and subsequent enforcement (through litigation) of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and other laws, most archaeologists, historians, and other historic preservation specialists were employed primarily in the field of academia, working at universities or other places of higher learning. However, since the passage of the NHPA, ever-increasing numbers of these professionals are employed in support of the cultural resources management industry. Large public works projects often require that teams of archaeologists perform limited excavations in order to properly inventory buried archaeological remains and assess their eligibility for the National Register of Historic Places. This industry has also allowed a larger swath of individuals to participate in archaeology and history as, unlike in the academic arena, a PhD is not required to earn a professional livelihood.

The Secretary of the Interior's Professional Qualification Standards require a graduate degree plus at least one year of full time experience, at least four months of fieldwork, and demonstrated ability to carry research to completion. As a result, most cultural resource management firms (as well as environmental consulting firms which possess a cultural resource management component) staff masters-degreed professionals to manage particular projects while typically a PhD-level professional may maintain oversight of several projects. Additionally, the basic field work often required in support of performing the Section 106-mandated inventories of cultural resources is conducted by individuals with or earning bachelors degrees. As a result, many undergraduates and recent graduates in the fields which support the implementation of the National Historic Preservation Act have found gainful employment. In the past, they stood little chance of earning a living in these fields without an advanced degree. However, CRM is still one of the lowest paying fields for educated professionals.