Thursday, September 29, 2011

Stonehenge saved?

Stonehenge saved? As was noticed in the December 1995 ANTIQUITY, the presentsurroundings of Stonehenge - premier monument of European prehistory prehistory,period of human evolution before writing was invented and records kept. The term was coined by Daniel Wilson in 1851. It is followed by protohistory, the period for which we have some records but must still rely largely on archaeological evidence to -are unhappy. Geoffrey Wainwright Geoffrey Wainwright is a British Methodist theologian.Born in Yorkshire, England, in 1939, Geoffrey Wainwright is an ordained minister of the British Methodist Church. He received his university education in Cambridge, Geneva, and Rome, and holds the Dr. Th��ol. , head of archaeology at EnglishHeritage English Heritage is a non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom government (Department for Culture, Media and Sport) with a broad remit of managing the historic environment of England. It was set up under the terms of the National Heritage Act 1983. , reports the current proposals to make a fit setting forStonehenge, and what may happen now.The present positionStonehenge is one of the best-known and most important monuments inEurope, and its status is reflected in its designation as thecentrepiece of a World Heritage Site. For England it is a nationalheritage icon and its management provides a litmus test litmus testn.A test for chemical acidity or basicity using litmus paper. for how EnglishHeritage, the National Trust and Government care for our heritage.Stonehenge was taken into guardianship by Parliament long ago. Thisresponsibility was inherited by English Heritage upon our creation in1984, and thus the stones themselves and the 12-acre triangle of land onwhich they stand are in the ownership of the State but protected andmanaged by English Heritage. We also lease from the National Trust anarea across the A344 road to provide a free car-park for visitors, whoreach the monument via a concrete tunnel under the road.Part of the surrounding downland A downland is an area of open chalk hills. This term is especially used to describe the chalk countryside in southern England. Areas of downland are often referred to as Downs. which forms the historic and naturalsetting of Stonehenge, and which contains a great number of importantassociated archaeological sites, is owned and managed by the NationalTrust. All of this National Trust land is held inalienably in��al��ien��a��ble?adj.That cannot be transferred to another or others: inalienable rights.in��al and inperpetuity Of endless duration; not subject to termination.The phrase in perpetuity is often used in the grant of an Easement to a utility company. in perpetuityadj. forever, as in one's right to keep the profits from the land in perpetuity. for preservation. It cannot, by law, be disposed of, alteredor developed without the consent of the Trust. If there were any suchproposal to do so to which the Trust objected, it has the right,uniquely, to take its case to Parliament for consideration of thenational interest. English Heritage and the National Trust aretherefore, in different but complementary ways, charged with theprotection and management of Stonehenge and its landscape, and for anumber of years have been partners in a joint enterprise designed toprovide Stonehenge with a setting worthy of its importance.What we see today has been rightly described by the Public AccountsCommittee of the House of Commons House of Commons:see Parliament. as a 'national disgrace'.The setting of the monument is marred by the continuous stream ofvehicles passing along the A303 and A344. The free car-park is a hideousintrusion on the landscape, and 700,000 visitors each year trudgethrough a concrete underpass to reach the monument, whilst unknownnumbers risk life and limb to rush across the A344 in order to get afree view of the monument and to stroke the Heelstone just inside thewire fence a fence consisting of posts with strained horizontal wires, wire netting, or other wirework, between.See also: Wire . Despite the valiant efforts of the monument manager and herstaff to alleviate the conditions, it is truly a cause for nationalshame that we have allowed one of the most important prehistoricmonuments in the world to be so degraded.One reason for the present lamentable la��men��ta��ble?adj.Inspiring or deserving of lament or regret; deplorable or pitiable. See Synonyms at pathetic.lamen��ta��bly adv. state of affairs is that it hasresulted from an accumulation of short-term decisions from earlier timeswhen Stonehenge was managed as a single monument rather than a focuswithin a landscape which runs to the horizon. Also the two main roadsand their junction were constructed long ago without any regard for themonument or its setting. Furthermore, although in 1984 the new andenergetic English Heritage declared the sorting-out of Stonehenge to bea priority, after 10 years of negotiation no major physical improvementshave been implemented. Everyone can agree that the present state ofaffairs is no good but individual groups have found it well-nighimpossible to work together to a common goal.English Heritage and the National Trust are working in closepartnership to protect the archaeology and to re-unite the historiclandscape at Stonehenge. Our joint vision is to form a Stonehenge Trustwhich will manage the World Heritage Site as a Stonehenge MillenniumPark Millennium Park is a prominent civic center of the City of Chicago in Illinois and an important landmark of the city's lakefront. A redeveloped section of Grant Park, the 24. where the public will be able to roam freely, uninterrupted byroads, fences and 20th-century detritus detritus/de��tri��tus/ (de-tri��tus) particulate matter produced by or remaining after the wearing away or disintegration of a substance or tissue. de��tri��tusn. pl. .A powerful voice in the negotiations has been the Department ofTransport who in 1993 identified the Yellow (on-line) and Grey(southern) routes as part of their public consultation on plans to makethe A303 a dual-carriageway road constructed to the Trans European RoadNetwork standard between Amesbury and Berwick Down. In July 1994, StevenNorris Steven J. Norris (born May 24 1945 in Liverpool) is a British Conservative politician. He was the official Conservative candidate for Mayor of London in 2000 and 2004, reducing the gap between Mayor Livingstone and himself and attracting sufficient second preference votes to , Minister at the Department of Transport, publicly withdrew theYellow and Grey routes, and this was confirmed by Viscount Goschen Viscount Goschen, of Hawkhurst in the County of Kent, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1900 for the politician George Joachim Goschen inthe House of Lords House of Lords:see Parliament. on 30 and 31 October 1995. In July 1994 - at theStonehenge Conference in the QEII Conference Centre - Mr Norrisannounced the setting-up of a joint working party consisting of theHighways Agency, English Heritage and the National Trust. 'I amdelighted that the Department and English Heritage will be able to worktogether with the National Trust, with us all sharing a simple commongoal - to produce the best, not the cheapest but the best solution forStonehenge,' said Mr Norris.In the ensuing months, the working party identified a number oftechnically viable options including a long 4-km tunnel (The GreenTunnel) and a northern route incorporating a bored tunnel at the eastend of the Cursus.The 1995 Planning Conference and its outcomeIn September 1995 the Highways Agency announced a second phase ofconsultation, and issued a brochure, which included the Yellow and Greyroutes previously withdrawn by Mr Norris and a surface northern route -the Purple route. In addition they announced a Planning Conference intothe proposals to be held in November 1995. The Planning ConferenceProcedure is relatively new and explicitly stated to be non-statutoryand informal. There are potentially valuable opportunities for delegatesto provide information on attitudes, opinions and reasoning under anindependent chairman appointed by the Highways Agency. Any consensusreached by the Conference is regarded as being helpful in informing theSecretary of State for Transport The Secretary of State for Transport is the member of the cabinet responsible for the British Department for Transport. The role has had a high turnover as new appointments are blamed for the failures of decades of their predecessors. , but is not necessarily determinativein the selection of a final route.We in English Heritage and the National Trust were surprised that theoptions identified by the working party were not included in theConference leaflet published by the Highways Agency. They had apparentlybeen dismissed on grounds of cost, but we were not aware of anycost-benefit analysis or other appraisal undertaken by the HighwaysAgency to justify this decision. We were clear that we totally opposedthe three surface options (Yellow, Grey and Purple) on grounds ofenvironmental impact and their effect on the local population. We weretherefore determined that the Conference should discuss the additionaloptions which had been identified by the working party but not includedin the Conference brochure, especially since we considered that theyprovided an opportunity to arrive at an acceptable scheme.We therefore put forward two options at the Planning Conference fordiscussion by the delegates:The Green TunnelA detailed study was made by Halcrow at the request of the HighwaysAgency, and presented to the joint working party, on a twin bored tunnelof approximately 4 km running from New King Barrow Ridge to west ofFargo plantation. This would have no impact on archaeology, landscape,environment and local housing. It is technically feasible, and ourestimate of the cost is [pounds]200 million. The Highways Agency had ahigher estimate of the cost but we had not seen their detailed analysisof this or of any cost-benefit analysis which would have to take intoaccount the benefits of the proper conservation and presentation ofStonehenge made possible by the tunnel.The Purple RouteWe believe that a proper solution for the A303 is a long tunnelpassing beneath the World Heritage Site. Alternatively, if a long tunnelcannot be afforded, there may be an acceptable diversion to the north,provided that such a diversion has minimum impact on local people, theenvironment and the archaeology. Even partially to achieve these aims,such a route would require an 850-m bored tunnel at the east end of theCursus at a cost in excess of [pounds]30 million.Following a week of intense debate in early November 1995 thePlanning Conference agreed the following resolutions amongst others:1 Considers there is an urgent and immediate need for a bypass ofWinterbourne Stoke and supports a northern route for it which should bedeveloped to mitigate its effect on local interests and be built as soonas possible as a separate and independent scheme.2 Endorses the Government's commitment to the UK obligationsunder the UNESCO UNESCO:see United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. UNESCOin full United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Convention on World Heritage Sites to enhance thesetting of Stonehenge, through the removal of adjacent roads andre-siting of the visitor centre.3 Supports the objectives of English Heritage and National Trust asmanagers of the Stonehenge Monument and owners of the surrounding landto seek the restoration of the Monument to its landscape through theclosure and restoration to downland of the A303 between StonehengeCottages and Longbarrow Cross Roads, and the A344 between StonehengeBottom and Airman's Corner and the re-siting of the present visitorfacilities.4 Considers that the closure of the A303 depends on there being anacceptable alternative route for this section of the A303 whichsatisfied County and District Planning Policies and guidelines andavoids the disruption of local communities.5 Supports the development of facilities for visitors to Stonehengein the context of a sustainable development Sustainable development is a socio-ecological process characterized by the fulfilment of human needs while maintaining the quality of the natural environment indefinitely. The linkage between environment and development was globally recognized in 1980, when the International Union plan and visitors'transport choices.6 Considers that subject to adequate safety provision, facilities forthe traveller to stop and view Stonehenge in its landscape should beretained in addition to facilities for the visitor.7 Notes the various horizons visible from Stonehenge and agrees withthe concept of a Stonehenge Bowl with the monument at its centre as thearea which gives Stonehenge its special setting, and which should beavoided by any route for the diverted A303.8 Rejects the northern Purple Route, its variant and its proposedmodification by English Heritage and the National Trust, none of whichis acceptable to local communities.9 Does not support the southern Grey Route which passes through thesouthern limits of the Stonehenge Bowl and affects inalienable Not subject to sale or transfer; inseparable.That which is inalienable cannot be bought, sold, or transferred from one individual to another. The personal rights to life and liberty guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States are inalienable. landowned by National Trust.10 Supports in principle the proposal by English Heritage andNational Trust for a long tunnel under the Stonehenge site butrecommends further investigations are carried out to establish a portalwest of the A360 to link with Winterbourne Stoke Bypass.11 Recognizes that cost of a long tunnel is far in excess of thefunds likely to be available from the current transport budget andsupports the efforts of English Heritage and National Trust to obtaingovernment or other funding for the tunnels as part of the restorationof the World Heritage Site and the creation of a Stonehenge MillenniumPark.12 Recommends that any tunnel under Stonehenge is built at asufficient distance from the Monument to avoid any disturbance to theStones both during construction and when the tunnel is in use.13 Requests the Government to give swift and serious consideration tothe resolutions of this Conference in the hope that Stonehenge may beappropriately restored to its landscape as soon as possible.The Conference therefore endorsed our joint aims of closing the A303and A344 and the re-siting of the present visitor facilities through theconstruction of a long tunnel under the World Heritage Site. All otheroptions were rejected. A report on these recommendations will beprepared and submitted to the Secretary of State for Transport.ConclusionThe next step is for the order of costs for the tunnel solution to beagreed between the Highways Agency and ourselves, and for a case to bemade to Government for the high cost - in excess of [pounds]200 million- which will be involved. This will bring the issue of the price we puton the most important parts of our heritage into the public arena. Inbringing the long-tunnel option before the Planning Conference andsecuring the consensus of the delegates to it, we have secured backingfor the ideal solution - but will the resources be found to secure itfor future generations? Stonehenge is special and as deserving of fundsas any cultural icon A cultural icon is an object or person which is distinctive to, or particularly representative of, a specific culture. An example is the bowler hat which could be considered an English cultural icon. Others include tea, The Beatles and association football. , and we must press to ensure that this isrecognized.Since we estimate that the 4-km tunnel will take at least six yearsto complete, English Heritage and the National Trust have decided todivide the creation of the Stonehenge Millennium Park into two phases.The first phase will involve the closure of the A344; the removal of theexisting Visitor Centre and car-park; the restoration of the landscapeand removal of fences within the World Heritage Site north of the A303;a new Visitor Centre at Countess Farm outside the World Heritage Site; atransport system taking visitors from the new Visitor Centre to viewingpoints within the World Heritage Site whence they can walk toStonehenge; and the purchase: or negotiation of management agreements ofall land within the World Heritage Site. We intend that work shouldstart in 1996 with completion in good time for opening in the year 2000to celebrate the new millennium.

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