Abstract

First Nations are expressing increasing interest in the management of aboriginal heritage. Although involvement to date in Western Canada has been mainly concerned with the disposition of sacred sites and objects, trends in the U.S., Australia, and elsewhere suggest that greater involvement in the co-regulation and management of aboriginal archaeological resources on the non-Indian lands can be expected here. What is co-management, and what can provincial regulatory agencies and the archaeological community generally expect in this new bilateral partnership? In this paper archaeological resource co-management is examined by considering basic objectives and operating principles, possible co-management opportunities primarily as they relate to resource regulation (e.g. land development review, investigation permitting and compliance, impact management, etc.), and some of the main problems or issues that may hinder co-management. Finally, prospects and recommendations for making archaeological resource co-regulation and co-management work are presented.