ABSTRACT
Many countries have developed systems to record and protect their archaeological remains, an area of archaeology often called Cultural Resource Management (CRM) and one that has become increasingly important over the last two decades. Mounting pressures on the environment, both urban and rural in the form of development and changing agricultural practices, have resulted in the need for CRM systems that are extremely detailed, and often complex, inventories. CRM is frequently integrated within national and/or local development control legislation and as such CRM inventories have become an important tool in the work of planning authorities and their contracting archaeologists. At the same time these bodies of information have great potential as a research resource and often form the foundation of academic research projects as well as satisfying increasing general interest.
