Page 266 - Manual for Activities directed at the Underwater Cultural Heritage

© B.Jeffery. The Dock Boat shipwreck, Chuuk Lagoon, Federated Sates of Micronesia. Underwater archaeological heritage is greatly exposed to physical-mechanical threats such as erosion or deterioration caused by dredging, fishing, and anchoring.This deteroriation
can equally be due to tidal movementsts or changes in water circulation. Many of the threats to archaeological sites pose also threats to the natural environment of such sites.This concerns especially construction projects and pollution issues. A site management plan should always look at a site as a whole and not only consider one side of its nature.
This shipwreck referred to as
the Dock Boat (Chuuk Lagoon) was the object of scientific investigation during which great effort was undertaken to maintain the coral in its pristine state, in addition to documenting the amount of benthos covering the shipwreck.
Site management and the
environment
Long-term management of an archaeological site should take account of environmental issues, at least as much as a single intervention would. Human presence will be a key factor in sustainable development and protection. This is true both for the cultural heritage at the underwater site and for the ecosystem. The protection of fauna and flora and their environment is necessary, as they are important to human life. Protection means in this regard protecting habitats and interchanges rather than preserving the life of every entity.
Visitor impact
The degree of attention paid to environmental issues in a site management plan depends on the stability of the situation and on the number of expected visitors. Visitors should leave no trace of their presence, neither in the short- nor long-term. This certainly also applies to diving, during which nothing should be broken, overturned or uncovered, either voluntarily or involuntarily.
Accordingly, certain forms of behaviour such
as scraping the bottom with a control valve or monitoring instrument, giving blows with swim
fins, bumping or colliding with obstacles etc. are not admissible. Similarly, trampling should be avoided, 265
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Environment