Md. Code Regs. 34.04.03.03

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 22, November 1, 2024

Section 34.04.03.03 - Activities Not Requiring Permit

A. Access Without Permit. A person may inspect, study, explore, photograph, measure, record, conduct a reconnaissance survey, or otherwise use and enjoy a submerged archeological historic property without being required to obtain a permit if the use or activity does not:

(1) Involve excavation, destruction, or substantive injury of the historic property or its immediate environment;

(2) Endanger other persons or property; or

(3) Violate other regulations or provisions of federal, State, or local law.

B. Limited Collection of Artifacts.

(1) Subject to the provisions of §§B(2) and (3), C and D of this regulation, a person, without a permit, may collect from any one site not more than five individual artifacts that:

(a) Are exposed or resting on the bottom sediments of submerged lands but are not embedded;

(b) Do not require excavation to recover; and

(c) Weigh cumulatively not more than a total of 25 pounds.

(2) Artifacts may not be recovered from a site unless they can be obtained by hand or through the use of screwdrivers, wrenches, or pliers, which may be not larger than 12 inches in length and have a width across the jaws of not more than 2 inches.

(3) After recovery of artifacts as prescribed in §B(1) and (2) of this regulation, a lift bag may be used solely for the purpose of transporting the artifacts to the surface.

C. Restrictions.

(1) A person who has received a permit under Regulation .09 or .10 of this chapter may not exercise the right to limited collection of artifacts under this regulation. The pertinent provisions of these regulations and the permit shall govern the permittee's collection of all artifacts.

(2) If the activities or collection of artifacts by a person without a permit results in one or more of the prohibited actions set forth in §A of this regulation, the State has the right to restrict access to the site, to require that any artifacts recovered be turned over to the Trust, and to initiate proceedings under Regulation .15 of this chapter or to require that the person apply for a permit.

(3) A person may not collect artifacts from a site that:

(a) Has been included in or determined eligible for inclusion in the National Register;

(b) Has been designated or determined eligible for designation as a National Historic Landmark; or

(c) Is entered on the Trust's list of sites for which permits will not be issued that is referred to in Regulation .04C of this chapter.

(4) The sites referred to in §C(3) of this regulation shall be fully described on a register available for examination at the Program's principal office. The Program shall make copies available to the public upon request.

D. Artifacts Recovered Without Permit.

(1) Persons who have collected objects in accordance with §B of this regulation shall furnish the Trust with a list of the objects and a description of the places from which the objects were recovered as soon as possible but not later than 30 days from the date of collection.

(2) Review of Objects by Trust.

(a) The Trust shall review each list of objects not later than 30 days from the date of receipt of the objects.

(b) The Trust may require reasonable access to any artifact for purposes of documentation, analysis, or conservation.

(c) The Trust may require an option or right of first refusal to acquire, in a manner acceptable to the owner, any artifact about which the Trust has made a written determination approved by the Secretary to be of exceptional scientific, archeological, anthropological, historical, recreational, or other public value to warrant acquisition by the Trust in certain circumstances.

Md. Code Regs. 34.04.03.03