The interaction of these factors created the specific preservation environment that made the Ozette assemblage possible.

None of the individual factors alone would have been sufficient.

The combination of fine texture, waterlogging, cool temperature, and the moderate but not total resistance of wood to anaerobic decomposition produced a preservation outcome that archaeologists rarely encounter.

Understanding the preservation chemistry is important not just as a matter of scientific curiosity but because it informs how similar sites should be managed when they are encountered.

The conditions that created the Ozette preservation environment can exist at other sites along the Northwest Coast, in estuaries, in intertidal zones, and in other waterlogged contexts.