26th May 2005, 07:05 PM
Had to undertake watching briefs over a 20 hectare regeneration site. Consultants had agreed that the developer would carry out stripping in one area at a time. Over a year later, I was still running from one phase to the next as the developer dug where and when he pleased-usually simultaneously. The consultants did nothing as they were making a good profit margin, the county mounty told me, and I quote, "stop making things any more complicated than they already are". The value of a watching brief depends upon the professionalism of the consultants, the curators, the field archaeologist and, the planning authorities. Money casts a long shadow over the principles and ethics of what is right for the archaeology.Properly carried out-good things come from them. Carried out in a commercial environment? not so sure...