  People who have archaeological sites on their land have many ways of protecting the sites. A site covered by natural vegetation usually is camouflaged and has limited access. As long as the owner does not clear the land, disturbance to the site will be minimized. A site already in a cultivated field probably will not suffer significantly from continued plowing at the same depth. Although initial plowing altered artifact relationships in the plow zone, the materials beneath remain well protected. A landowner who is interested in protecting a site may want to have it recognized by placing it on the Registry of State Cultural Resource Landmarks. The Registry is established as an authoritative guide to the state’s most important archaeological sites. Once a site is placed on the Registry, there is an agreement between the owner and the State of Louisiana to help protect it. This process ensures that important sites will be recognized, preserved, and protected to the maximum extent possible. The site in this soybean field has already been disturbed, but probably will not suffer significantly if plowing is continued at the same depth. Landowners who finance excavations can receive substantial tax benefits. A landowner who is unable to protect a site because of plans to plow deeper, cultivate an unplowed area, or do construction, should alert the Division of Archaeology. If he gives enough advance warning, an archaeologist may be able to evaluate the site before the changes begin. Recently, the tax advantages available to site owners have been clarified. One landowner paid half of the excavation cost at a site on his land and claimed his cost as a tax deduction. Later, he donated the artifacts from the site and also deducted their worth, equivalent to the entire cost of the excavation. Federal tax incentives also apply to the gift of an important archaeological site to a governmental or nonprofit organization. This donation can be either an outright gift or an easement (in which the owner gives up certain control of the land, but retains ownership). In either case, the transaction qualifies as a charitable contribution for federal income tax, estate tax, and gift tax purposes. |
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