Title 25

SECTION 700.809

700.809 Permit requirements and exceptions.

§ 700.809 Permit requirements and exceptions.

(a) Any person proposing to excavate and/or remove archaeological resources from the New Lands, and to carry out activities associated with such excavation and/or removal, shall apply to the Federal Land Manager for a permit for the proposed work, and shall not begin the proposed work until a permit has been issued. The Federal Land Manager may issue a permit to any qualified person, subject to appropriate terms and conditions, provided that the person applying for a permit meets conditions in § 700.815(a) of this part.

(b) Exceptions:

(1) No permit shall be required under this part for any person conducting activities on the New Lands under other permits leases, licenses, or entitlements for use, when those activities are exclusively for purposes other than the excavation and/or removal of archaeological resources, even though those activities might incidentally result in the disturbance of archaeological resources. General earth-moving excavation conducted under a permit or other authorization shall not be construed to mean excavation and/or removal as used in this part. This exception does not, however, affect the Federal Land Manager's responsibility to comply with other authorities which protect archaeological resources prior to approving permits, leases, licenses or entitlements for use; any excavation and/or removal of archaeological resources required for compliance with those authorities shall be conducted in accordance with the permit requirements of this part.

(2) No permit shall be required under this part for any person collecting for private purposes any rock, coin, bullet, or mineral which is not an archaeological resource as defined in this part, provided that such collecting does not result in disturbance of any archaeological resource.

(3) No permit shall be required under this part or under section 3 of the Act of June 8, 1906 (16 U.S.C. 432), for the excavation or removal by the Navajo Nation or member thereof of any archaeological resource located on the New Lands, except that in the absence of tribal law regulating the excavation or removal of archaeological resources, an individual tribal member shall be required to obtain a permit under this part;

(4) No permit shall be required under this part for any person to carry out any archaeological activity authorized by a permit issued under section 3 of the Act of June 8, 1906 (16 U.S.C. 432), before the enactment of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979. Such permit shall remain in effect according to its terms and conditions until expiration.

(5) No permit shall be required under section 3 of the Act of June 8, 1906 (16 U.S.C. 432) for any archaeological work for which a permit is issued under this part.

(c) Persons carrying out official agency duties under the Federal Land Manager's direction, associated with the management of archaeological resources, need not follow the permit application procedures of § 700.811. However, the Federal Land Manager shall insure that provisions of §§ 700.815 and 700.817 have been met by other documented means and that any official duties which might result in harm to or destruction of any Indian tribal religious or cultural site, as determined by the Federal Land Manager, have been the subject of consideration.

(d) Upon the written request of the Governor of any State, on behalf of the State or its educational institutions, the Federal Land Manager with the concurrence of the Navajo Nation, shall issue a permit, subject to the provisions of §§ 700.809(b)(5), 700.815(a) (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7), 700.817, 700.819, 700.823, 700.825(a), to such Governor or to such designee as the Governor deems qualified to carry out the intent of the Act, for purposes of conducting archaeological research, excavating, and/or removing archaeological resources, and safeguarding and preserving any materials and data collected in a university, museum, or other scientific or educational institution approved by the Federal Land Manager.

(e) Under other statutory, regulatory, or administrative authorities governing the use of the New Lands, authorizations may be required for activities which do not require a permit under this part. Any person wishing to conduct on the New Lands any activity related to but believed to fall outside the scope of this part should consult with the Federal Land Manager, for the purpose of determining whether any authorization is required, prior to beginning such activities.