Q. 12, Short EAF (Part 1) History & Archeology
Environmental Assessment Form (SEAF)
a. Does the project site contain, or is it substantially contiguous to, a building, archaeological site, or district which is listed on the National or State Register of Historic Places, or that has been determined by the Commissioner of the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places?
b. Is the project site, or any portion of it, located in or adjacent to an area designated as sensitive for archaeological sites on the NY Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) archaeological site inventory?
Background Information
The National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places* is a national program designed to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources. The National Register is the official Federal list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture. Listing in the National Register of Historic Places provides formal recognition of a property's historical, architectural, or archeological significance based on national standards used by every state.
The State Register of Historic Places is the official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects, significant in the history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture of New York. The same eligibility criteria are used for both the State and National Registers. The State Historic Preservation Office* (SHPO) helps communities identify, evaluate, preserve, and revitalize these resources. The State register website may have more up-to-date information than the National register site, but both may be useful to provide information for this question.
In addition to our rich multi-ethnic (American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and White) history and built environment, NYS also has a long prehistory of over 10,000 years of Native American occupation. These archeological resources* are usually not as evident as more recent structures and sites, but they are important resources to preserve, and they are very susceptible to development as they usually lie less than a foot or so below the surface of the ground.
Answering the Question
a. Does the project site contain, or is it substantially contiguous to, a building, archaeological site, or district which is listed on the National or State Register of Historic Places, or that has been determined by the Commissioner of the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places?
The answer to this question will be automatically inserted on the PDF generated by the EAF Mapper. If a listed resource, or resource that has been determined by the Commissioner of OPRHP to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places, does exist within the boundaries of the project site, or within 500' of the project site, the EAF Mapper will check "yes" on a PDF of the SEAF.
For this question, if the EAF Mapper answers "yes" to this question, the applicant should further investigate historic resources in the area by using the OPRHP web pages described below, If the applicant or project sponsor believes the answer filled out by the EAF Mapper is incorrect, supplemental information should be provided to the reviewing agency that explains that discrepancy. The EAF Mapper will not include National Register proposals that have not yet been approved by the State Historic Review Board. If there are no listed State or Federal historic resources, or no resources that have been determined by the Commissioner of OPRHP to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places, located in the project boundary or within 500' of it, the EAF Mapper will check "no" on the form for you. A "no" response does not require further verification unless other, substantive, information is known to exist.
If the EAF Mapper is not used to answer this question, applicants can also use the National Register Information System* (NRIS) to identify listed resources but must use OPHRP's CRIS website (discussed below) to identify resources that have been determined by the Commissioner of OPRHP to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places. You can search by state, county, or city. The NRIS is arranged by the historic name of the property. If you know the address of the property, but not the historic name, you will have to look at each listing in the county or city.
To find out if a specific property listed on the National Register of Historic Places is located in the vicinity of a property, you can use the Geographic Information System for Archeology and National Register tool on OPRHP's web site (link provided in section "b" of this question).
Because historic names or addresses are needed for the NRIS, locating listed properties in the vicinity of a project may be more cumbersome on this site than the GIS Mapping Tool at OPRHP.
To find out if a property is listed on the State Register, or has been determined by the Commissioner of OPRHP to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places, use the OPRHP Cultural Resource Information System (CRIS)* Mapping tool.
Answer no if the proposed project site does not contain any structures listed on the State or National Register of Historic Places, or no structures determined by the Commissioner of OPRHP to be eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places.
Answer yes if the proposed project site contains a structure listed on the State or National Register of Historic Places, or that has been determined eligible for listing on the State Register of Historic Places by the Commissioner of OPRHP. If you answer yes, this may mean the project would be classified as a Type I action. Check Part 617 regulations to determine if the project would be a Type I.
b. Is the proposed action located in an archeological sensitive area?
The answer to this question will be automatically inserted on the pdf generated by the EAF Mapper. The sensitivity of an area for archeological sites is not buffered in the EAF Mapper. If the project site does contain sensitive archaeological resources within its boundaries, the EAF Mapper will check "yes" on a PDF of the SEAF. Sensitivity for archaeological sites usually covers large areas. Therefore, if the EAF Mapper returns a 'yes' for the project site, then applicants should consider having further evaluation or a site specific study of the project area conducted.
If the applicant or project sponsor believes the answer filled out by the EAF Mapper is incorrect, supplemental information should be provided to the reviewing agency that explains that discrepancy. If there are no known sensitive archaeological resources on the project site, the EAF Mapper will check "no" on the form for you.
If the EAF Mapper is not used to answer this question, the OPRHP's Cultural Resource Information System (CRIS) Online-Tool* can be used to identify areas within NYS that contain archeologically sensitive* features.
Answer no if the proposed project is not located in an archeological sensitive area.
Answer yes if the proposed project is located in an archeological sensitive area. If you answer yes, this may mean that the project would be classified as a Type I action. Check Part 617 regulations to determine if the project would be a Type I.
Other Useful Links
Back to Part 1 Project Information || Continue to SEAF - Question 13 - (Part 1)
*Note: Links with * leave DEC's website
