7th July 2009, 02:41 PM
Hard to say how accurate this percentage is without knowing the underlying assumptions. I'm assuming that 'investigation' means digging a hole, which would seem to rule out all DBAs, EIAs and non-intrusive assessments, whether within planning or not. If a road scheme or pipeline was counted as 'one' then the figure might be accurate, but you're really into an apple/orange comparison situation.
You'd also have to count the number of 'investigations' run by academics, amateurs and societies, which can't really be more than an educated guess.
The point is probably sound, that almost all archaeology is comissioned through the planning system.
You'd also have to count the number of 'investigations' run by academics, amateurs and societies, which can't really be more than an educated guess.
The point is probably sound, that almost all archaeology is comissioned through the planning system.