A Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Four Seismic Lines in the Northwest Portion of Yucca Flat, Nye County, Nevada. Short Report

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY DESERT RESEARCH INSTITUTE CULTURAL RESOURCES RECONNAISSANCE Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Four Seismic Lines in the North west Portion of Yucca Flat, Nye County, Nevada. GEOGRAPHIC AND NTS AREA: Yucca Flat, Areas 1, 2, and 4 USGS Oak Spring, Rainier Mesa, Tippipah Spring and Yucca Flat 7.5' Topographic DATES OF FIELD RECONNAISSANCE: The Nevada Test Site proposes to conduct several seismic tests in the north-west area of Yucca Flat. These tests will involve driving a truck equipped with special pounding equipment along flagged lines across the flat pounding the ground at specified intervals. Four lines are proposed, two across the fan eminating from the canyon north of Syncline Ridge, and two on the bajada along the eastern foothills of the Eliana Range. Although the total length of the lines totalled about 29 km. (18 miles), only about 3 km. of the distance was outside the area already investigated for archaeological sites by Desert Research Institute in 1983 (Pippin n.d.). Only BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY the 3 km. mentioned above was surveyed for this report. The length of Line 1 that was surveyed approximately 480 meters (1580')» Line 2 was 500 meters (1650') and Lines 3 and 4 were both 980 meters (3220') (see Maps 1 and 2). PREVIOUS CULTURAL RESOURCES STUDIES IN THE AREA: During the 1930's Margret Long (1950) made several trips into the Yucca Flat area, which she refers to as part of Emigrant Valley, in search of the routes followed by the famous Forty-niner parties (Pippin and Zerga 1980: SI54). Similarly, S.M. Wheeler (1940) visited Whiterock Spring, Oak Spring Butte and Captain Jack Cave during one of his many field trips through southern Nevada and provided general descriptions of the cultural resources at those localities. Beginning in the early 1960's, Frederick Worman began working in the area. In 1962, he excavated two rock shelters on Rainier Mesa, just north of Yucca Flat, and in 1964, he and Charles Rozair examined the "old shore line" along the southern end of Yucca Lake (Worman 1966:13). Worman and Rozair also apparently surveyed other, undisclosed portions of Yucca Flat during this time, and concluded that, for the most part. Yucca Flat was "of no archaeological interest (Worman 1966, Fig. 1)." It was not until the Desert Research Institute (DRI), at the request of the Nevada Test Site Office (NTSO), initiated preconstruction surveys in Yucca Flat during 1982 that the area was again examined for cultural resources. Fifteen separate preconstruction surveys have been conducted by DRI in Yucca Flat since 1982. Seven of these were linear transects ranging in length from 1.6 to 6.4 km. (1 to 4 miles) along proposed seismic lines (Clerico 1982a). Three additional preconstruction surveys were conducted around Drill BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY Surveyed Area and Site Map USGS Rainier Mesa Quad 7-5' BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY USGS Tippipah Spring and Yucca Flat Quads 7.5' BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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Hole UelOaa on Oak Spring Wash totalling about 2.4 square kilometers (Clerico 1983; Pippin 1982a; Reno 1983). These surveys revealed a large diffuse obsidian flake scatter (26NY3121) which was sampled with a 10% surface collection (Pippin n.d.). An additional 0.37 square kilometers were surveyed around Drill Hole U8j south-east of Whiterock Spring, along with similar sized areas around Ue4ac and an unnamed drill hole in Area 2 (Reno 1982a; Pippin 1982b; Pippin 1982c). A preconstruction survey was also performed in a slightly larger, but partially disturbed area (0.84 square kilometers) on the eastern edge of Yucca Flat around Drill Hole U9cw (Reno 1982b). Only isolated artifacts were found during these surveys. An inspection of a pipeline corridor from Frenchman Flat, across Hogback Ridge to the southern end of the Yucca Lake discovered five isolated artifacts and a small lithic scatter (Clerico 1982b). Finally, an inspection of portions of a fiber optics line route along the west side to Yucca Flat discovred two small sites (Henton In the summer of 1983, Ronald L. Reno of DRI, conducted a random sample survey of the central portion of Yucca Flat, excluding disturbed areas. The sample size was 10% or approximately 17 square kilometers. The units used were 500 x 500 meter squares. A total 127 archaeological sites were recorded, most of them small, and including 70 isolates (Pippin n.d.). Two of the seismic lines, Lines 1 and 2, are located high up the bajada on the west side of Yucca Flat close to the foothills of the Eleana Range. In this area, the bajada has an eastern exposure with a slope of about 6 degrees and is dissected by numerous small washes. The alluvium in this area is BEST AVAILABLE COPY BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY covered by a relatively well developed desert pavement except in the washes. Elevation here ranges between 4920 and 5120'. Lines 3 and 4 are located on the fan of the drainage north of Syncline Ridge. This area also has an eastern exposure, but the slope is only 1 to 2 degrees, and the elevation ranges from 4300 to 4400'. The alluvium here appears younger and well developed desert pavement is not nearly as common. The characteristic vegetation for both areas is a blackbrush community which is composed principally of Coleogyne ramosissima, Grayla spinosa, Hymenoclea sp., Bromus rubens, Stipa sp., and Mendora spinescens. The closest permanent source of water to Lines 1 and 2 is Captain Jack Spring approximately 5 km. north in the Eleana Range. The closest permanent source of water to Lines 3 and 4 is Tippipah Spring 6 km. to the west. A single transect along the portions of the seismic line routes west of the Tippipah Highway was walked by an archaeologist looking for surface indications of archaeological sites. The length of the transects was 480 meters for Line 1, 500 meters for Line 2 and 980 meters for both Lines 3 and 4. Ground visibility was good for all of the transects. IDENTIFIED CULTURAL RESOURCES: One archaeological site was found, an isolated core reduction flake made of fine-grained white welded tuff found along Seismic Line 2. This flake was recorded as a site and collected. BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY SITE EVALUATIONS AND STATEMENTS OF SIGNIFICANCE: Since the only site found was collected at the time it was recorded, it no longer meets any ciriteria of 36 CFR 60.6 and is not eligible for the National ASSESSMENT OF IMPACTS: In view of the above, no adverse impacts to cultural resources are expected by the implementation of the project. RECOMMENDED PROCEDURES FOR THE PROTECTION OF CULTURAL RESOURCES: No procedures for the protection of cultural resources are proposed. BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY 1982a Cultural Resources Report for the Survey of Seven Seismic Lines Located in Yucca Flat. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Short Report Numbers 070184-1 through 7. 1982b Cultural Resource Reconnaissance of a Pipeline Across Hogback Ridge, Yucca Lake Quadrangle, Nevada. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Short Report Number 0332982-1. 1983 Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Proposed Drill Site U1 0c, and Associated Water Pipel ine to Area 1 5 Water Well and an Expansion of a Previously Surveyed Area Around Drill Site UelOaa. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short 1983 Class II Reconnaissance of Portions of the Direct Bury Optic Fiber Communications Line in Yucca Flat. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short Report Number 120283-1. 1950 The Shadow of the Arrow. Caxton Printers, Ltd., Caldwell. 354 pp. 1982a Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Area 10 Looksee Site at Ue1Oaa, Yucca Flat, Nye County, Nevada. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short Report Number 1982b Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Exploratory Dril 1 Hole Ue4ac, Yucca Flat, NTS, Nevada. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short Report Number 120182-2. 1982c Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Area 2^ Looksee Site at Foot Coordinates N871,800 E656,700, Yucca Flat, Nevada. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short n.d. An Archaeological Reconnaissance of Yucca Flat, Nye County, Nevada. 1981 Cultural Resources Overview for the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigations, Nevad a Test Site, Nye County, Nevad a. Desert Research Institute Social Sciences Center Publication Number 24. BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY 1982a Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of Dril1 Pad and Skid Trail at Dril1 Hole U8j, Yucca Flat, Nevada. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short Report Number 1982b Class III Cultural Resources Reconnaissance of a Pad ana Support Areas for Dril1 Hole U9cw. Desert Research Institute Cultural Resources Reconnaissance Short Report Number 092082-1. 1940 Preliminary Report of Reconnaissance in the Forty-mile Canyon Area. Unpublished ms. on file at the Nevada State Museum, Carson City, 1966 The Current Status of Archaeology at the Nevada Test Site and Nuclear Rocket Development Station. Los Alamos Scientific BEST AVAILABLE COPY

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BEST AVAILABLE COPY DESERT RESEARCH INSTITUTE SITE INVENTORY FORM 1. PROJECT: Yucca Flat Seismic Line 2 — 1?34 2. PERM. SITE NO.: 26NY_____ 3. STATE: Nevada 4. COUNTY: Nye 5. TEMP. SITE NO.: S070584GH 7. MAP: Rainier Mesa 7.5/ 8. ELEVATION: 4960' 9. ACCESS/LQCATICfrl: Site is located well up the bajada approximately 300 west o+ the Tippipah Highway and approximately 6 km. south o-f Rainier Mesa Road. 10. SITE TYPE: Isolate ; DESCRIPTION: One -fine grained white welded 11. AREA: .01 Ares 12. ESTIMATED DEPTH: N/A 13. NATURE OF BOUNDARIES N/A 14. DISTURBANCE None <B) DESCRIPTION: See 10 above. 16. COLLECTED MATERIALS: All 20. SLOPE OF SITE: 4 degrees 21 EXPOSURE DIRECTION: 40 degrees 22. SUBSTRATE BEDROCK: Alluvium. 23. NEAREST WATER: Captain Jack Spring - 4.4 km. - 333 degrees 25. 0UB4ER: Department of Energy 26. ADDRESS: Mercury — Nevada 27. PHOTOS: BW: None, TO PHOTOS: COLOR: None, TO 28. RECORDED BY: Gregory Henton 29. DATE: 7/5/84 30. ATTACHM^S/REFERENCES BEST AVAILABLE COPY