Refining and Revising the Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Region High- Probability Model for Historic Shipwrecks

In 1973, the Federal government initiated a program to protect cultural resources existing on the submerged lands of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) of the United States from the effects of Federally funded and permitted activities. This program arose out of a variety of legislation enacted to ensure the proper management and protection of the nation’s cultural heritage. The most pertinent of these laws were the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, the National Environmental Policy Act(1969), and the OCS Lands Act Amendments of 1978. The program was initially placedunder the authority of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the United States Geological Survey (USGS), and of particular concern was the impact that Federally permitted mineral exploitation—principally oil and gas exploration and production—and Federally funded projects might have on cultural properties on the OCS. Section206(g)(3) of the OCS Lands Act Amendments of 1978 states specifically that “such exploration (oil and gas) will not. . .disturb any site, structure, or object of historical or archaeological significance.”