This is Appendix 8 from a reference document prepared for the Global Expert Group on Sustainable Lunar Activity (GEGSLA).
Gorman, A.C. 2023 The Sustainable Management of Lunar Natural and Cultural Heritage: Suggested Principles and Guidelines. Reference document, Global Expert Group on Sustainable Lunar Activity
The full document can be downloaded here.
Apollo 17 panorama. Credit: NASA
This draft has adapted standard components of terrestrial Cultural Heritage Management Plans with a view to their applicability to the unique circumstances of lunar activities. It is intended as a first approximation which could be further developed.
Standard components of a Lunar Cultural Heritage Management Plan (LCHMP) could include the following:
Introduction
• The reasons for preparing the Management Plan (eg voluntary, required by regulation)
• A brief description of the location of the activity area or safety zone, including relevant coordinates
• The time frame for application of the LCHMP, in terms of the duration of the activity or the safety zone
• The name of the lunar operator (space agency, private company, consortium etc) with all contact details for enquiries or reporting
• The name of the heritage expert who undertook the work and their qualifications and experience
Activity description
• Clear, relevant and detailed information about the nature and extent of the proposed activity to be covered by the LCHMP, including ancillary works, in order to assess the scope for potential impact on lunar cultural heritage.
• A description of the likely impact on the surface from the activity and how this relates to impacts on heritage sites
• Appropriate images of the activity area.
Documentation of consultation
• The names and roles of any persons or parties consulted in the process of creating the LCHMP
• Records of formal consultation meetings or processes, including date, location, agenda items
• Outcomes of consultation meetings, including the documentation of disagreements
• Details of informal consultations (eg personal communications)
• Details of meetings of any advisory groups established for the purposes of the project
• If the proponent of the development and the LCHMP is different to the launching state of the heritage site, official representatives of the launching state may need to be signatories to the LCHMP as a way of avoiding disputes and ensuring agreement to the mitigation measures.
Dispute resolution
Procedures for dispute resolution are a typical feature of terrestrial CHMPs. The LCHMP may set out time frames for communications regarding the dispute, and preferred methods, for example, mediation or negotiation, or the appointment of a neutral evaluator. Any mechanisms which have been established for more general disputes in lunar governance systems would be appropriate to use.
Results of cultural heritage assessments
Cultural heritage sites should be identified by unique designators to avoid confusion. If a lunar heritage register has been established, these designators should be used.
Desktop assessment
• Search of relevant international or national heritage registers to locate registered lunar objects and registered terrestrial heritage sites which are related to the lunar site
• Search of literature and UN Register of Space Objects to identify sites not present on national heritage registers or international space heritage registers
• Search of relevant museum collections to identify material culture related to heritage sites in the activity area
• Literature review of previous reports, academic literature, and archives where applicable
• Satellite imagery of the activity area
• Assessment of the likelihood that previously unknown heritage locations or objects might be present
• Identification of relevant stakeholders. A cultural heritage site may exist across more than one safety zone or activity area.
Field assessment
Where a field assessment, either using human personnel or robotic means, can be undertaken without creating harm to a heritage site, it should include:
• Survey methods eg remote sensing, instruments used, location of transects, scale of observation
• Maps, images or new data obtained about the location and condition of existing sites
• Maps, images or new data obtained about the location and condition of previously unknown sites
• Obstacles and limitations of the survey
• Details of any samples removed or any other disturbance of the site, whether deliberate or accidental
Details of cultural heritage in the activity area (if any)
The aim of these sections is to provide sufficient information to make evidence-based management decisions.
• Details of the assessments undertaken to determine the nature and significance of each place or object, including analysis of site formation processes;
• Results of the assessments
• Precise coordinates of location and extent of the site
• A detailed plan of the site showing the relationship between objects and traces
• A detailed description of the material remains at the site, including any catalogues of data recorded.
• Historical background of the site
• An assessment of the significance of the place, site or objects. It is recommended that the significance criteria of the Burra Charter be used for consistency.
• Any images of the site
• Impact assessment, including the cumulative impact of ongoing activities in the area
• Whether the activity will be conducted in a way that avoids harm to the place or object
• If there is potential harm, whether the activity will be conducted in a way that minimises harm to the place or object
• What aspects of cultural significance will be affected by the activity
• Any specific measures required for the management of the place or object, before, during and after the activity.
• Any contingency plans required in relation to disputes, delays and other obstacles that may affect the conduct of the activity
Specific management and mitigation measures
The Management Plan should clearly explain why the activity cannot be conducted to avoid harm to cultural heritage if this is the case. If harm is likely to be caused, then mitigation measures to minimise the harm should be outlined.
Based on the significance assessment, specific management measures should be identified. They could include:
• Avoidance of the site as the preferred management strategy in the first instance ie locate the activity as far away as possible
• If a heritage site is not going to be impacted by the activity, then no action should be taken that will create unnecessary disturbance.
• Adjust the design of the activity (eg location of specific elements, construction methods, operations methods) to minimise harm
• A salvage strategy to recover information only when it is not possible for that cultural heritage to be preserved in situ.
• Note that disturbance and salvage is destructive and should only be carried out when necessary to identify and document the extent, nature and significance of the cultural heritage that may be threatened by the proposed activity. Disturbance or salvage should not occur if it causes more harm to the heritage than the activity.
• Removal and curation of heritage objects. A plan should be provided specifying secure storage location (whether that is on the Moon or Earth), resourcing, and any relevant factors relating to the long-term survival and safety of the objects. Potential repositories should be identified in advance. For example, the Smithsonian Institution has a Memorandum of Understanding with NASA for the deposition of materials related to US space activity.
• Removal of human biological material, for example, from the Apollo missions or cremated ashes, must be handled sensitively, with a view to preserving the dignity of the people to whom they belong (or their family and descendants). Protocols established for ethically dealing with human remains in other disciplines can provide guidance here.
• Any removed objects must be catalogued, labelled and documented to the fullest extent possible.
• A monitoring plan to collect information on the condition of sites at regular intervals during the activity. This can be done by remote sensing.
• At the end of the activity or safety zone, an audit of the impacts of the activity on heritage places
• Any combination of the above measures.
Contingency plans
A Management Plan must include contingency plans for the discovery of previously unknown lunar heritage during works. This could include:
• Stop works for a specified time and/or within a specified distance (ie buffer zone), leaving the remains in situ, until an assessment can be prepared and appropriate management recommended.
• Verification of the identity of the material and the launching state
• Notification to the legal owner of the object/s (Liability Convention 1972)
• A plan for consultation with the legal owner and other stakeholders
• Consultation with a heritage expert to provide a significance assessment
• Dispute resolution in relation to the cultural heritage eg between the lunar operator and the legal owner of the heritage objects, where these are different, about how the heritage place is to be managed; or between different stakeholders. Dispute resolution should specify appropriate time frames and processes, using, for example, any mechanisms which have been established for more general disputes in lunar governance systems.
Other Considerations
A LCHMP may also provide for the following:
• Disaster management provisions
• Protocols for handling sensitive information
• Cultural heritage training or inclusion of heritage in induction procedures for employees or contractors
• Evaluation of the LCHMP by an independent expert prior to adoption or implementation
• Evaluation of the LCHMP by relevant stakeholders
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