These resources are protected by theft and destruction of government property statutes. Private lands, including patented mining claims, are a legal source of this material. Good intentions are no substitute for scientific procedures in the excavation of an archaeological site. Once an artifact is removed from its context or relationship with surrounding artifacts and structures, most information about it is lost. There is a common misconception that archaeological material, if left in the ground, will decompose.
Some people think they are saving it by digging it up.
It is true some decomposition takes place. However, the bulk of the material has been in the ground for hundreds or thousands of years. Most of it has reached a state of balance with the surrounding sod, and is safe from further destruction. Improper excavation of artifacts destroys the context and the story of what happened at that archaeological site, and can even speed-up the deterioration process of some items collected or disturbed and left behind. Commercial harvesting of artifacts is particularly destructive of archaeological values.