APPENDIX B 

ARCHAEOLOGICAL QUESTIONNAIRE 
B-1 

Tidewater Atlantic Research, Inc. 

Outer Continental Shelf Submerged Cultural Resources Survey 

Purpose: 

Tidewater Atlantic Research, Inc. (TAR), of Washington, North Carolina is working with 

Research Planning Inc., of Columbia, South Carolina to help Minerals Management Service 

(MMS) identify state of the art methods and equipment for submerged cultural resource remote 

sensing surveys and to identify parameters for areas of avoidance designed to protect submerged 

cultural resources. To accomplish those objectives TAR project personnel will be collecting 

information by communicating with individuals, organizations, institutions, state, Federal and 

foreign government agencies and equipment manufacturers involved in remote sensing and 

cultural resource management. In developing recommendations for remote sensing equipment 

and survey methodology TAR personnel will consider such issues as: 

1. State-of-the-art remote sensing equipment and its limitations 

2. Survey methodology 

3. Target signature assessment criteria 

4. Scope and nature of the resource base 

5. Report formats 

6. Survey data and geographic information systems 

The issue of zones of avoidance and protection will also be examined. In conjunction with efforts 

to enhance the effectiveness of avoidance as an alternative to mitigation, TAR will consider such 

issues as: 

1. Submerged cultural resource site typology and characteristics 

2. Avoidance zone characteristics 

a. Size 

b. Shape 

c. Orientation 

3. Environmental considerations 

a. Depth 

b. Currents 

c. Wave motion 

d. Sediment character 

4. Dredging 

a. Type of operation 

b. Positioning control 

c. Depth below bottom 

5. Extant zone characteristics 

6. Monitoring 

The attached form will serve as the basis for collecting our preliminary data. Please consider 

taking the time to respond. Your input will be a valuable addition to the data that will serve as 

the basis for developing a comprehensive response to the important issues Minerals Management 

Service has identified. 
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2 

Submerged Cultural Resource Survey Questionnaire 

Respondent Name: 

Agency/Organization: 

Position: 

Address: 

 City: 

 State/Country: 

Email Address: 

Phone Number: 

Fax Number: 

Agency/Organization Mandate 

Does your organization/agency promulgate rules or regulations 

concerning the protection and management of submerged cultural 

resources? Yes No 

 

Are those regulations/rules published or publicly disseminated? Yes No 

Could a copy be forwarded to our office for examination? Yes No 

Survey Equipment and Methodology 

What remote sensing equipment is required for submerged cultural resource surveys? 

 Magnotometer 

 Type(s) : 

 Side scan sonar 

 Type(s) : 

 Subbottom profiler 

 Type(s) : 

 Fathometer 

 Type(s) : 

What data collection requirements have been adopted by your organization? 

What data analysis requirements have been adopted by your organization? 
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3 

What data presentation requirements have been adopted by your organization? 

Do you have anomaly specific remote sensing data that has been ground truthed? 

Is that information available for comparison? Yes No 

How would you rate the correlation between anomalies identified as potentially 

significant and historically or archaeologically significant submerged cultural resources? 

What do you feel is the ideal remote sensing equipment array and methodology for 

conducting submerged cultural resource surveys? 

What do you feel are the most significant deficiencies in locating and assessing 

submerged cultural resources? 

 

How would you assess the existing remote sensing survey parameters? 

Historic Sites 

What do you feel are the detectable characteristics of submerged historic sites? 

What types of equipment and survey parameters are effective in identifying historic sites. 

How can their areal extent be defined? 

Can zones of avoidance be effectively employed in protecting historic sites? 

What kind of monitoring program would be effective? 
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4 

Prehistoric Sites 

What do you feel are the detectable characteristics of submerged prehistoric sites? 

What types of equipment and survey parameters might be effective in identifying 

prehistoric sites? 

How can their areal extent be defined? 

Can zones of avoidance be effectively employed in protecting prehistoric sites? 

What kind of monitoring program would be effective? 

Avoidance Zones 

Does your organization/agency employ or accept zones of avoidance in lieu of other 

mitigation options? 

How are the characteristics of zones of avoidance determined? 

What environmental factors are considered in determining zone characteristics? 

What characteristics have been adopted? 

Have the characteristics of zones ever been modeled or tested? 

What were the results? 

Have established zones ever been inspected or monitored? 
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What were the results? 

What methods are used to insure that dredging does not impact the zones of avoidance? 

Have post dredging or construction surveys ever been carried out? 

What were the results? 

Has any plan or design modeling and testing been considered? 

How would you design and monitor a zone of avoidance? 

How would you assess the existing zone of avoidance parameters? 

If you would be willing to review and comment on the compiled results of the MMS 

survey please indicate: Yes No 

Thank you for taking the time to respond to this inquiry. 

Please return to: 

 Gordon P. Watts, Jr. 

 Tidewater Atlantic Research, Inc. 

P.O. Box 2494 

Washington, North Carolina 27889 

Fax: (252) 975 2828 

Email: iimr@coastalnet.com 

For questions contact: 

 Gordon P. Watts, Jr. 

 Tidewater Atlantic Research, Inc. 

 Phone (252) 975 6659 

 Phone (252) 975 1927 

Fax: (252) 975 2828 

Email: iimr@coastalnet.com