Oil and gas surveys can provide expensive seabed mapping useful to maritime archaeology. The reported Bronze Age wreck is one example of a discovery by a commercial survey team. Continuing survey licences is proposed as a way to fund this work while leaving drilling permission as a separate decision. Archaeologists also have a reason to delay announcements until they have examined a site: publicity can attract people who remove artefacts.
Notable Point · 26:07-27:21
How commercial seabed surveys help maritime archaeology
Commercial survey funding can reveal historic wrecks and map the seabed, while archaeological announcements must account for the risk of looting.