English Heritage is seeking views on three draft thematic research strategies, covering the historic industrial environment, the urban historic environment and prehistoric archaeology.
The three are being revised to align them with the National Heritage Protection Plan.
The draft strategy on the historic industrial environment makes clear that investigation of old industrial sites is needed where the historic environment is threatened with change.
"The modern requirements of many industries are no longer compatible with the sites they have historically occupied and the latter have been vacated while many other industries have simply ceased operation," it says.
"The result has been disused, derelict or empty sites with the potential of yielding valuable evidence but often classified as brownfield sites and subject to major regeneration projects. Conversely, some thriving industries in historic buildings occupy prime sites whose real estate value is greater than the financial returns from their products and they therefore also experience redevelopment pressures with the consequent loss of historic fabric and evidence."
It identifies research needs and says there is a need to study the state and sustainability of preserved industrial sites and for recording of threatened sites and says this is much better done before the industry closes, simply leaving the buildings.
"Industrial sites and landscapes feature strongly in most urban regeneration and rural land use programmes and are a vital element of our tourist industry but by their very nature they are particularly susceptible to changes that can destroy their character and evidence," it says.
"That change must be managed in a fashion informed by thorough research, its progress recorded carefully and the opportunity taken for scientific investigation prior to destruction of evidence."
But no specific mention is made of land contamination, reclamation or remediation and no attempt is made to identify any synergies between land contamination site investigation and industrial archaeology.
Comments are required by 30 September.
