Stage 3: Site-Specific Assessment

Stage 3 assesses the cultural heritage value or interest of each archaeological site identified in Stage 2, and this will determine whether it has been sufficiently documented or if further measures are required to protect or document the site fully.

In addition Stage 3 will determine the extent of the archaeological site and the artifacts characteristics through a sample representative of the all the artifacts collected. This will determine the need for mitigation of development impacts and recommend appropriate strategies for mitigation.

Based on results from Stage 2 property survey certain types of archaeological sites will occur:

1. Controlled surface pick-up (CSP):

–          An examination of the archaeological site’s ground surface, mapping, and collecting artifacts on the surface.
–          For open ploughed fields where archaeological sites were discovered through Stage 2 Pedestrian Survey

2. Test Unit Excavation:

–          Controlled excavation of 1m square test units, in selected locations, that will:

• Determine the presence of buried artifacts, structures, stratigraphy, and cultural features, and,
• Build a collection of representative sample of artifacts

–          Done as a follow-up to CSP and for archaeological sites discovered through Stage 2 test pit survey

Assessed cultural heritage value or interest                         Recommended Next Step

-Archaeological  site has cultural heritage value or            – Stage 4 mitigation of development impacts through interest requiring mitigation of development       avoidance and protection or excavation impacts.

– The cultural heritage value or interest of the                       – Fieldwork and documentation complete and archaeological site has been sufficiently documented       therefore, no further fieldwork or mitigation or mitigated.                                                                                                is required.

Historical Documentation:

If available, historical documentation requires a detailed documentary research of the land use and occupation history specific to the archaeological site is required. The research conducted here will supplement research conducted in Stage 1.

Research will be conducted when:

1. Information identifying an archaeological site as sacred to First Nation communities
2. Individual or communities with oral or written information about the archaeological site, for instance First Nation communities, the proponent, professional and avocational archaeologists, or local residents
3. Historic settlement maps
4. Land titles or records, land registry documents
5. Historic land use and ownership records, for example, assessment roles, census records, First Nation land use records, commercial directories.
6. Primary historical document sources, e.g. diaries
7. Secondary historical document sources, e.g. regional histories.

Dependent on what is presented in Stage 2 of assessment certain sites will require different fieldwork for test pits, please see pages 61 to 63 at http://www.mtc.gov.on.ca/en/publications/SG_2010.pdf for detailed photos of the archaeological procedures that will be done.

For example, Woodland Villages:

To help define the extent of a Woodland village, mechanical topsoil removal may be used as a method to excavate test trenches beyond the archaeological site limits established by surface artifacts scatter and positive test units.

Analysis determining whether an archaeological site requires mitigation of development impacts:
–          Information collected in Stage 3 will assess the cultural heritage value or interest of the archaeological site in question and in if so, Stage 4 mitigation will occur.

The following site types require Stage 4 mitigation:
–          Archaeological sites identified as sacred or as containing burial
–          Rare (unique, unusual) archaeological sites
–          If the site indicates the earliest human occupation of the province, i.e. Paleo-Indian archaeological sites, regardless of size or artifact yield
–          Large, dense lithic scatters
–          Woodland period archaeological sites
–          Post-contact archaeological sites dating to before 1830
–          Late 19^th and 20^th Century archaeological sites where background research (from any Stage) or features clearly indicate cultural heritage value or interest

• FIRST NATION COMMUNITIES must be engaged when assessing cultural heritage value or interest of an Indigenous archaeological site that is known to have or appears to have sacred or spiritual importance, or is associated with traditional land uses or geographic features of cultural heritage interest or are the subject of First Nation oral histories

Indicators of Cultural Heritage Value or Interest include:
Cultural historical value– e.g. past human social organization at the family, household or community level
Historical value– e.g. oral histories of a community, First Nation community, or specific group or family
Scientific value– e.g. paleo-environmental studies
Rarity or frequency– e.g. if archaeological site is useful for comparison with similar archaeological sites in other areas.
Productivity- e.g. archaeological sites contains large quantities of artifacts, especially diagnostic artifacts
Integrity– e.g. archaeological site is well preserved and retains a large degree of original material
Value to community
Criteria– e.g. the archaeological site contains human remains, is identified as a sacred site, or a traditional recurring event such as an annual celebration occurs, etc.

The avoidance and protection of sites is always the preferred approach to the Stage 4 mitigation impacts to archaeological sites.

The following approaches can be used singly or in combination to reduce or eliminate impacts to archaeological sites:

Project redesign: changing the design, layout, location or timing of the proposed project or the planned construction within the project property. This includes relocating or repositioning proposed buildings, roadways, lot sizes or layouts, or project facilities.

Excluding the area of the archaeological site: redrawing the boundaries of the area proposed for development so as to exclude the area of the archaeological site from the final development application, for example, a proposed highway or pipeline is diverted from the protected area. This way the archaeological site is no longer part of the proposed development.

Incorporating the area of the archaeological site: including the area in the final development plans, but without land alteration of any kind in the area containing the site, for instance, if site is within woodland or parkland setting inclusion of this data helps with assessment and protection.

First Nation communities must be engaged when formulating Stage 4 mitigation strategies for the following types of First Nation sites:

Rare First Nation archaeological sites

Sites identified as sacred or known to contain human remains

Woodland First Nation sites

First Nation archaeological sites where topsoil stripping is being contemplated

Undisturbed First Nation sites

Sites previously identified as being of interest to First Nation communities