6-7366 DixieFivemile SOW AVLforArch.pdf

AVL for Archaeology Scope of Work Procurement Authority: State of Utah AS24-114 Project Title: Fivemile Ridge Phase 2 Heritage Survey (WRI 7366)

Cultural Resources Project Type: Intensive archaeological survey

Project Owner: Dixie National Forest

Project Description: The Dixie National Forest (DNF) is proposing to carry out landscape level vegetation treatments on the Cedar City Ranger District (CCRD) in the Fivemile Ridge area. The Area of Potential Effect (APE) for Fivemile Ridge project is entirely on the CCRD and the proposed survey will be for 2,355 acres. A Class III inventory report, GIS data entry, and data entry into the Heritage NRM Mobile Database will be required for this survey. Previous surveys were completed adjacent to these areas in 2025 (reporting is in progress).

This survey is part of the Fivemile Pasture Wildlife Habitat Improvement and Fuels Reduction Project (WRI 7366) WRI project. The Cedar City Ranger District has identified almost 86,000 acres of sagebrush, mountain brush, bitterbrush, pinyon and juniper woodland and riparian communities across the Ranger District where vegetation management could maintain and improve wildlife habitat, while reducing the risk of uncharacteristically high severity fire in this Sagebrush Steppe and Woodland Restoration project area. Project activities will include mechanical mastication, prescribed burning, lop and scatter pile burning, hand thinning, and rabbitbrush wet mowing.

Project Location: The Fivemile Pasture survey area covers 2,355 acres and is located on the CCRD. The Fivemile Pasture Treatment Unit is located approximately 3 miles west of Panguitch, UT. The Unit is bounded to the east by Fivemile Hollow and to the west by Pole Hollow. Panguitch Creek and SR 143 are just to the south and Fivemile Ridge is to the north.

Legal Location of Survey Units:

• Fivemile Ridge USGS Quadrangles

• T35S, R6W, Sections 3, 4, 5, 9, and 16

• T 34S, R6W, Sections 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, and 34

• T 34S, R8W, Section 31

WRI Number: 7366

Acres: 2,355

Permitting Requirements: The project must be led by an individual with a current PLPCO PI permit. The PI and field supervisors must be SOI qualified.

Land Manager: The project is found entirely on DNF lands.

DWR Region: Southern

Project Lead: Mike Golden (michael.golden@usda.gov)

Cultural Lead: There is currently no Forest Archaeologist or Heritage Program Manager on the DNF and no solid estimate of when these positions will be filled. Cultural resources support from the Forest Service Regional Office is no longer available. Project management support will be provided by Mike Golden and Del Orme (del.orme@usda.gov).

https://wri.utah.gov/wri/project/title.html?id=7366 https://wri.utah.gov/wri/project/title.html?id=7366

Arie Leeflang (DWR) will be assisting with contracting and invoice processing. He will also be tasked with reviewing draft and final deliverables and providing comments. Given the DNF’s personnel constraints, the Contractor will need to function largely independently under existing Forest Service and SHPO standards and guidance.

Project Schedule and Period of Performance:

• Fieldwork will be completed by: 5/1/2026.

• Draft deliverables completed by: 6/1/2026.

• Final report completed by: 6/30/2026.

• NRM data entry will be completed by: 6/30/2026.

Given WRI and state fiscal year cycles, these are hard due dates.

WRI Contracted Model: Lump sum. Please include a per-acre rate in your bid response.

Invoicing Schedule: Invoicing for this project will follow the standard AVL for Archaeology contract schedule: 10% invoiced upon completion of pre-field literature review; 50% upon completion of fieldwork, including delivery of rolling consultation materials; 30% upon delivery of draft deliverables; final 10% upon full acceptance of final deliverables by DNF project management staff and Arie Leeflang. Approval of milestone invoicing must be made by Del or Mike. Please note – arrival and approval of each milestone require the submission of milestone-reaching documentation. For the pre-field literature review, this requires the submission of brief class I document that summarizes the initial literature review and background research effort. While this does not need to be polished, the document should provide evidence of a thorough literature review effort and should include a survey findings expectations paragraph. Arrival at the fieldwork milestone requires the submission of preliminary shapefiles of site boundaries, survey coverage, and survey intensities.

Fieldwork Requirements: Please use digital datums. Flagging is not required. Please follow UtSHPO and USFS guidance (attached) for all other fieldwork and reporting standards. Please also follow the 2008 UPAC Linear Sites guidance for the recordation of linear sites. Justify the recordation of any historic linear sites as an archaeological site in the site form.

Provide photographs of any prehistoric diagnostic artifacts and features. SHPO guidance for arborglyph resources (if identified) will be followed (SHPO Guidance page 35).

All work should adhere to the 2024 Utah SHPO Cultural Resource Compliance Guide. 100% intensive pedestrian survey of the survey units is required. Transects will follow FSH 2309.24 Cultural Resource Handbook guidelines on survey procedures for intensive pedestrian survey that “should not exceed 15 meters, and which may not exceed 25 meters.” In the event of slope exceeding 35 degrees or other conditions risking the safety of crew members, a reconnaissance/intuitive survey (>15m transect) may be used. Deviations from a 100% intensive pedestrian survey shall be communicated to the DNF and DWR after the field session or as soon as possible to ensure any resulting issues may be immediately addressed by the DNF and DWR. Acreage falling under recon and intensive should be clearly articulated on the UTSHPO Cover Sheet, within the report text, and in the final deliverables shapefiles.

Reporting Requirements: No paper reporting is required for this project. Copies of the standard SHPO digital deliverables are required for DNF and DWR. Isolated occurrence/find data will be submitted in the current SHPO GIS template in addition to the report.

The Utah Archaeology Site Form will be used for recording new sites and updating previously recorded sites. All sites shall be assigned a Forest Service site number along with a Smithsonian site number. The contractor shall contact the DNF to obtain Forest Service site numbers for each recorded site. The Forest AR-site number will be used as the primary site identifier (i.e. in text, site narratives, tables, maps, etc.). Acceptable format for site numbers within the report is as follows: AR-04-07-02-XXXX. Extra zeros will be dropped from the site number (e.g. 04070200802 shall be written as AR- 04-07-02-802).

https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1hAJxgWXp2vMaWmlGWAlYhxPhlsF5dXdK

For project planning purposes, within two weeks of the close of the final fieldwork session, draft findings GIS data will be submitted to the DNF. This data will include basic site information, preliminary NRHP recommendations, and site boundaries.

Site Eligibility: The contractor will evaluate each cultural resource site and make a recommendation regarding its eligibility to the National Register of Historic Places using all criteria listed in 36 CFR 60.4, National Register Bulletin 15, and provide all appropriate site, feature, and artifact documentation as required in the specifications as justification for a determination of eligibility. Apply the criteria for integrity and significance to evaluate each property over 50 years old identified during the survey pursuant to 36 CFR Part 60.4. Identify the property as a district, site, building, structure, or object. Indicate whether the property should be listed on the state register or should be determined as eligible for national register listing. Properties less than 50 years old should be evaluated if it is apparent that they will be eligible for the state or national registers within 5 years of the date of the survey. Properties less than 50 years old that may be eligible for inclusion in the national register based on exceptional significance should be evaluated using national register criteria consideration G. If a property has been previously nominated for either the state or national registers, discuss the register status of the property and include the appropriate reference number. Any previous UTSHPO concurrence on eligibility should be documented in the site forms, tables, and report.

a) Prepare a clear statement of significance for each archaeological site; historic structure or building; component in a multi-component site; or other cultural property identified during the project. Indicate the level of significance as local, state, or national and include in the technical report. Each eligibility criterion (A-D) must be referenced when determining significance in the eligibility statement.

b) Include a clear statement of integrity for each archaeological site; historic structure or building; component in a multi-component site; or other cultural property identified during the project. All seven aspects of integrity (location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, association) must be discussed.

c) Each component in a multicomponent site must be addressed separately. Sites with different occupation phases will need an eligibility determination for each phase.

d) Determinations will be limited to “Eligible” and “Not Eligible”.

I. Not Eligible - If the cultural property is recommended as not significant or not eligible for listing, provide a clear discussion and complete documentation to support the recommendation. For archaeological sites, the discussion shall demonstrate that the site has been thoroughly studied, that surface artifacts and features have been recorded and that sufficient subsurface tests have been performed to support a conclusion that the site is unlikely to contribute important information. The lack of subsurface deposits is not in itself sufficient to support a recommendation that a site is not significant or not eligible. If the cultural property is from the historic period, provide basic archival documentation to augment field information and support the significance evaluation.

II. Eligible - If the cultural property is recommended as significant or eligible for listing, provide evidence supporting its significance including reference to historic contexts and scholarly research in the region.

Include a specific, evidence-based argument, linked to specific research topics and characteristics (historic values) observed. For archaeological sites, provide detailed descriptions of the types and numbers of surface artifacts and the types and numbers of features visible on the surface or in arroyos or road cuts. The presence of a large artifact scatter or the potential for subsurface deposits is not sufficient information to support an eligibility recommendation without additional discussion. If the cultural property is historic, include the results of archival research to support the evaluation.

Fire sensitivity: Wildfire resiliency and mitigations will need to be documented for all sites on PART A – Administrative Data under #30 Additional Part A Comments. Use the following table as guidance, at least one entry from each category should be used.

Wildfire Hazard Fuel Load Protection Recommendations

High risk (Rock art, sensitive historic sites, etc.)

Moderate risk (prehistoric structures or features, etc.)

Low risk (prehistoric artifact scatter, historic cans, etc.)

High (heavy dead/down, thickets, dense tree stands)

Moderate (duff, brush, limb debris)

Low (leaf litter, grass, sparse brush

None (no effect if fire went through site). Fire Shelter Wrap, Handline, Sprinklers, Fuels reduction (removal of small trees/ladder fuels). Also reference any required protection measures from potential wildland fighting measures (e.g., ground disturbing wildlife firefighting activities must avoid the site).

*Some sites may have multiple recommendations

Photographs: Each discovered and revisited cultural resource site will be digitally photographed at a resolution of at least 10 megapixels. As many photographs as are necessary to clearly depict the condition of each site and the features present should be taken. Each photo must be accompanied by a brief description, to include the subject, photo/file number, date taken, orientation, and photographer name.

Photographs will be compiled into a photo record, which is a component of the final site form.

a) At least one photograph shall show the physical environment and configuration of the land making up the site (site overview).

b) Photograph all key diagnostic artifacts with a scale. A drawing can also be done of diagnostic artifacts.

c) At least one photograph shall be taken for each recorded feature. Feature photos must include a scale. A scale drawing of features can also be done where appropriate.

d) Photographs should also illustrate evidence of site disturbances as noted in the site narrative.

Data Requirements (e.g. NRM data entry): The Contractor will enter the tabular & spatial survey, site, and feature data into the USFS Heritage Mobile Application according to DNF standard operating procedures (SOPs) that will be provided to the contractor. Site data includes site boundaries, features, datums, and artifact concentrations. The Mobile Application can be utilized at the contractor’s office and doesn’t require a USFS workstation. The individual(s) conducting data entry may be required to attend a Heritage NRM training session, given by the DNF prior to conducting data entry. The individual(s) conducting data entry may be required to attend a Heritage NRM training session, given by the DNF prior to conducting data entry.

The Heritage Mobile Application is a component of the USFS Heritage NRM database system. The contractor will utilize a data package file that has been transferred to them via Box Pinyon by DNF. If DNF is notified of a major program update that could cause compatibility issues with the contractor’s specific data package, DNF will notify the contractor and request their current data package be 100% vetted (no matter where the contractor data entry left off) and transferred back to DNF. There will be a deadline set for the check-in process and the timeline will be discussed with the contractor.

DNF will QC the data package and upload that data package back into NRM. DNF will then create and transfer a new data package for the contractor to finish the project.

NRM data entry can be time consuming and should be appropriately budgeted.

The contractor will also be required to have a Box account to share field session updates, spatial data, and all report materials with the DNF. Box Pinyon is the only authorized file share system for the USFS.

Final Spatial Data: The contractor will provide one final copy of all spatial data collected. The final spatial data will be delivered to the DNF via the shared USFS Box Pinyon project folder. A notification email will accompany the submission.

a) Spatial data will include all survey areas, site boundaries, features, datums, artifact concentrations, point-provenienced artifacts, IOs, and any other spatial data collected over the course of the project.

b) The final spatial data will be supplied as point, polyline, and polygon shapefiles. Geodatabases are not an acceptable format for final spatial data submission.

c) Final spatial data must be submitted in a clean, smooth, and corrected format. No raw or uncorrected data will be accepted.

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act Notification: The contractor will provide strict compliance with all Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) regulations as they apply to the inadvertent discovery of Native American human remains or cultural items.

Upon the inadvertent discovery, the contractor will provide immediate telephone notification of the discovery to pertinent DNF staff and provide a precise coordinate location of any human remains observed. The contractor will provide written confirmation of the inadvertent discovery to pertinent DNF staff within five days of the discovery.

Outside of this DNF notification, standard human remains discovery protocol will be followed, including the notification of local law enforcement as appropriate.

Social Media: The contractor and the contractor’s employees will not post photographs or written descriptions of cultural resource sites, features, or artifacts to any social media accounts such as Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Reddit, TikTok, Tumblr, Twitter, etc. without written permission from the DNF. The contractor and the contractor’s employees will not post the location or any other characteristics of cultural resource sites, features, and artifacts to social media without written permission from the DNF.

Billing PD: 202518. A fully executed PD/PO document will be provided at the time of the project award.

Notes on Access: The best access to the Fivemile Ridge treatment area is via the Pole Hollow Road (FSR 30082) and then the Panguitch Creek Trail (FSR 30404). The Pole Hollow Road is ~9.6 miles southwest of Panguitch on SR143. The Panguitch Creek Trail and routes leading off it are rough, high clearance roads better suited to Off Highway Vehicles (OHVs).

Past Surveys: Earlier this year we contracted an archaeological survey of an area immediately west of the current project area (WRI 6862 and 7089). At the time of this new solicitation, reporting for this past project is in progress. If the draft findings hold, this 1,267 archaeological survey has resulted in documentation of fifteen new archaeological sites and six updates. Three of the sites are recommended eligible. The draft deliverables have not been reviewed in full, but once finalized, the report will be shared with the bid awardee if requested. If additional information about these past findings is required to respond to this solicitation, please clearly communicate your needs with State Purchasing and we’ll do our best to provide any necessary data.

DNF Heritage contacts:

• Del Orme, 435-865-3230, del.orme@usda.gov

• Mike Golden, 435-865-3221, Michael.golden@usda.gov

DWR Contact:

• Arie Leeflang, 801-635-8897, aleeflang@utah.gov

Attached Files:

• 7366_Fivemile.zip - a shapefile of the project area

• 7366_Fivemile.kmz(kml) - a Google Earth file of the project area

• USFS-ConsultantsGuidanceUtah-20200420Final.pdf – USFS Consultants guide for fieldwork and reporting.

mailto:del.orme@usda.gov mailto:Michael.golden@usda.gov

How Projects will be Awarded

The individual SOW project award will be made based upon a cumulative assessment which will take place at each project release. That assessment will combine the previously outlined Best Value score and a new “SOW Cost Point Award.”

The Best Value score was awarded in RFP AS24-114 and is not changeable. It is a portion of 300 points as assessed in the first three categories (Technical Criteria) of the RFP.

The “SOW Cost Point Award” is figured each time bids are received based upon an individual SOW. The bid responses may be for a “lump sum” bid that would cover all the costs associated with the entire project. Or the bid responses may ask for a “base rate” bid that would cover the basic aspects of an archaeological survey and a “per site” bid that would also ask for the costs to record an archaeological site. 700 cost points are possible. The lowest cost bid will receive the full 700 points. Each higher bid will receive points based upon its percentage higher than the lowest bid.

Cumulative Assessment is calculated by:

(AS24-114 Best Value score out of 300) + (“SOW Cost Point Award” out of 700)

The highest point tally will receive the project contract at their submitted bid rate.

This approach will assure the State of Utah and the WRI are able to include the point rankings associated with non-cost elements from the RFP, along with the cost ranking associated with each project SOW release (aka the “SOW Cost Point Award”).

All work is contracted and awarded through the State of Utah Division of State Purchasing & General Services Solicitation AS24-114 and Limited Purchasing Delegation #230

Any awarded work is at a fixed rate and is not open to modification except as allowed under State of Utah Division of State Purchasing & General Services rules.

020304

17 14

26 25

T35S R6W

T34S R6W

369000368000367000366000365000364000363000362000

369000368000367000366000365000364000363000362000

Project Name: Fivemile Ridge Survey Area

Cedar City Ranger District, Dixie National Forest T. 34 S, R. 6 W, Section 27,28,31-34 T. 35 S, R. 6 W, Section 3-5, 9, 16 Quad: Fivemile Ridge

Report Number: RYYYY0407XXXXX State Report Number: UXXXXXXXX

Map Prepared By:lparry Date: 7/14/2025 T:\FS\NFS\Dixie\Project\CCRD\5100CedarCityWildlifeHabitatImprovement\GIS\Implementation\Laurie\Heritage\HeritageTemplatePro\HeritageTemplatePro.aprx

Survey Area 2,335 Acres National Forest

Bureau of Land Management

Private

State

Interstate; Highway

FS Open Roads

Admin

. Roads

Non-Forest Road

For Official Use Only Disclosure of Site Location is Prohibited (36CFR296.18)

Utah Arizona

Cedar City Escalante

Panguitch

St. George

Dixie National ForestN̄AD83

UTM 12N

Project Area

0.5 0 0.50.25 Miles