North Sea Prehistory Research and Management Framework - Revision

Tender description

The purpose of this project is to revise and republish online the North Sea Prehistory Research and Management Framework(NSPRMF) so that it can effectively inform archaeological assessments conducted as part of the delivery of offshore renewable energy infrastructure projects. The NSPRMF was originally published in 2009, as a joint Anglo-Dutch publication. Dutch colleagues have now produced an updated version of the NSPRMF for their sector of the North Sea(2019). We therefore consider it important that this research framework document is updated for the UK sector. The considerable expansion of the off shore renewable energy sector in the North Sea and the associated on-going programmes of assessment and evaluation are revealing considerable detail about past landscapes now submerged and buried in areas not subject previously to detailed survey and analysis. The 2016 UK Off shore Energy Strategic Environmental Assessment (OESEA3) identified that there is increasing awareness of the submerged archaeological resources of the UK Continental Shelf and that the techniques used for seabed investigation means that recovery of archaeological material or contextual palaeo-environmental information is increasingly likely. In light of this, the aim of this project is to revise and republish a combined research and management framework focusing on prehistoric environmental conditions as can been countered on, within and beneath the North Sea. The research component will provide an overview of current understanding and identify scientific goals which can help to inform the decision making process to optimise management of this resource in the context of the expansion of the off shore wind industry to meet government ambitions and targets for decarbonisation of the economy. The primary deliverable from the project will be a revised NSPRMF document. This will be a web based framework produced to form part of the network of research frameworks on the Research Frameworks platform (https://researchframeworks.org). By updating the NSPRMF we will ensure that agreed programmes of palaeo-environmental analysis conducted as part of the mitigation for off shore renewable energy development projects are informed by research perspectives that are coordinated within an overall research agenda. This approach will allow these projects to contribute to a wider map of submerged and buried landscapes. It will also help to support resource management in consideration of the potential cumulative impact of development on areas of known or potential palaeo-archaeological interest. By revising and updating the research and management framework, this project will help further our understanding of the available evidence about prehistoric environmental conditions and their archaeological potential, and help manage impacts on this resource during a intense period of change. THIS OPPORTUNITY IS BEING ADVERTISED BY HISTORIC ENGLAND ON BEHALF OF THE CROWN ESTATE