C2-SOW_TinCanI CrookedCreek.pdf

United States Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management

Central Montana District – Lewistown Field Office

2015 TIN CAN HILL UNIT I w/CROOKED CREEK OPTION

CLASS III CULTURAL RESOURCE INVENTORY

PETROLEUM COUNTY

STATEMENT OF WORK

I. Introduction and Background:

The Bureau of Land Management’s Lewistown Field Office (LFO) is proposing a Class III inventory of Tin Can Hill Unit I, a 3,424-acre unit with an option to inventory up to 6,500 additional acres in the Crooked Creek Fuels Treatment Area. These are two of several proposed treatment units associated with the Tin Can Hill and Crooked Creek prescribed burns. The LFO is proposing landscape-level prescribed burns in the northeastern portion of the field office, similar in scale and design to the recently-contracted Tin Can Hill and Crooked Creek units, all located in northeastern Petroleum County. This multi-year endeavor will encompass lands administered by the BLM, the State of Montana, private landowners, and possibly the CM Russell Wildlife Refuge.

For the sake of clarity, this SOW will focus on the Tin Can Hill Unit I Class III Cultural Resource Inventory.

Should the optional acres in the Crooked Creek fuels treatment area be awarded, the requirements of this SOW would carry forward. The work schedule would be discussed and more detailed maps made available at the time of award.

II. Project Location:

The project area is located in northern Petroleum County in central Montana, within the administrative boundary of the LFO. Haley Coulee bisects the unit. Unit I has roads forming the South and North boundaries. Landownership consists of BLM and private.

III. Specific Background:

A Class III intensive field inventory is a professionally conducted, continuous, intensive survey of an entire target area aimed at locating and recording all cultural properties that have surface and exposed-profile indications. In general, a Class III survey is accomplished through systematic inspection carried out by walking a series of close-interval parallel transects until the area has been thoroughly examined. Artificial exposure of the subsurface (metal detecting, auger probing or shovel testing) is sometimes a necessary part of Class III surveys and should be included in identification efforts if ground/surface visibility is completely obscured by heavy vegetation cover.

Paleontological localities, if identified, should be noted; complete documentation however is not part of this contract.

No cultural resource inventory has been completed within the analysis area. In 2012 a Class III inventory was completed adjacent to the project area to the east (Class III Cultural Resource Inventory of Tracts of Private, State of Montana, and Public Lands for Tin Can Hill Prescribed Burn, Units F, G, and I, Administered by the BLM Lewistown Field Office, Petroleum County, Montana, Report #13-MT-060-003).

No sites have been documented within the analysis area. Cabins, cow camps, and historic roads have been recorded immediately outside the APE, so it is possible more historic sites are present within the project area. Some lithic sites have been documented in the Musselshell Breaks area, but site density is low compared to other parts of the field office.

IV. Objectives.

A. General Bureau Objective: The overall Bureau objective is to inventory the area of potential effects (APE) for the proposed fuels treatment project in Unit I, to identify and evaluate historic properties within the APE, and to assess effects to identified historic properties within the APE.

B. Specific Study Objectives: To identify and evaluate, based primarily on surface indications, all cultural resources located on lands identified for survey within the project area. In general, site evaluations should be conducted using existing guidance from the Montana SHPO, the National Register Criteria (36 CFR 60.4), and the National Park Service National Register Bulletins. This area is known to have been used by members of the majority of Montana’s tribes; documentation regarding that use should be part of this inventory and analysis. The historic nature of the transportation systems within the analysis area also needs to be evaluated, recognizing that some roads may be historic.

V. Statement of Work.

A. The Contractor shall conduct a site file and literature search with the State Historic Preservation Office in Helena, Montana, and shall contact the Archaeologist at the Lewistown Field Office for additional resources. The purpose of this file search is to ensure that the Contractor is familiar with all previous work conducted in the general area of the project. This information will be a necessary component of the inventory report.

B. The Contractor shall perform an on-the-ground search for all cultural resources located on specific tracts of public land in Montana.

C. Formal testing will not be conducted; however, limited shovel testing or metal detecting, at the discretion of the field director, may be performed to establish potential for site deposition, site boundaries, or significance. Shovel testing is not a requirement for this procurement. If historic period architectural structures or remains are located the contractor is expected to conduct a land title examination as part of the site identification and evaluation effort.

D. The Contractor shall employ BLM criteria for minimum site definition; i.e., an archaeological or historical site consists of any feature alone or in association with other features (cairns, stone rings) or five or more artifacts situated in a discrete location within 50 meters of each other and/or artifacts or features located more than 100 meters from each other but in obvious association.

Sites may also include locations which contain no physical evidence but are important for their associations with the traditions of a group, ethnic community, or Indian tribe; e.g., National Register Bulletin 38.

E. The Contractor shall:

1. Cover the area to be inventoried on foot by employing standard survey methodology.

Transect intervals will be 30 meters or less. Transect intervals may be widened if conditions warrant; e.g., rough, steep, landforms. If transects are widened contractor shall document the rationale employed which justifies deviation from the standard interval distance. In all cases, coverage must be thorough.

2. Identify from all surface and exposed indications all cultural properties or materials. At each site location emplace a site datum. No datum should be placed within the road corridors where it could cause damage or harm to road users.

3. Collect time diagnostic artifacts; e.g., projectile points and ceramics. Include both those found on sites and those occurring in isolation.

4. Locate each cultural property on a United States Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5' quadrangle topographic map.

5. Record all cultural properties on BLM site/isolated find forms. Site forms and instructions can be found in BLM's Handbook (H-8110-1). Also, record previously recorded cultural properties located within unit boundaries identified for inventory. Employ BLM recording standards for Tipi Rings as specified in the Handbook and, for this procurement, use the requirements identified for the inventory level of recordation; i.e., Section I.A.- I.E.

6. Take at least two photographs of each cultural property and one of each survey tract.

Noticeable changes in geography dictate that at least one photo of each land type within each tract should be included. Standing historic structures shall be photographed on all sides to illustrate architectural features. Label all photos and negatives with a description and orientation. A photographic record shall be maintained and included in the final submission.

7. Prepare scale maps of all sites based on the location of the site datum and include topographic contour lines, cultural features, basic site contents, and locations of all collected artifacts. Use of digital maps zoomed in to show the site is not acceptable when the details of the maps are pixelated and no longer identifiable. While it is not necessary to map all artifacts, indicate areas of artifact concentration. When GPS technology is not available (i.e. no satellite coverage) all prehistoric cultural properties or historic material scatters shall be mapped by compass and tape or paced in meters. All historic period Euro-American standing structures and mining features; e.g., houses, barns, etc., shall be mapped in feet. When utilizing GPS technology, note the type of equipment and level of accuracy employed.

8. The Contractor shall obtain Smithsonian site numbers from the Montana SHPO for all cultural properties not previously assigned such numbers. The BLM will review all site forms for adequacy prior to the submission to the SHPO for site numbers.

F. Collections.

1. Collections shall be labeled and catalogued, using BLM catalog cards, and shall be processed in accordance with Billings Curation Center packaging standards (forms and packaging requirements are available from the Billings Curation Center).

2. All collections belong to the United States Government and will be delivered directly to the Billings Curation Center by the contractor as part of submitting the final inventory report.

G. Methodologies.

1. The Contractor shall determine the methods and techniques necessary for completion of this study using the guidelines identified herein, discuss those methods and techniques in their quotes, and conduct the work according to the procedures so specified. Survey methodology or proposed avoidance of certain areas needs to be addressed in the proposal and inventory report.

H. Specifications and Standards.

1. Inventory guidelines and standards for BLM generated cultural resource investigations can be found in BLM's Guidelines for Identifying Cultural Resources (H-8110-1). The Handbook is available upon request to the Montana State Office, Billings, Montana.

Additional requirements for the recordation of tipi rings are described in the Handbook.

Investigators must record the GPS locations of each corner of the unit before they begin the inventory. This information shall be included in the unit summaries.

2. Additional guidance can be found on the Montana State Historic Preservation Office website: http://mhs.mt.gov/shpo/ .

I. Analysis and Report Preparation.

1. Upon completion of the Class III inventory; prepare a professional quality report, addressing the general categories outlined below:

a. Title Sheet. Signed by the Principal Investigator.

b. Abstract. Provide a 250-word or less abstract of the report. The abstract must outline the report contents and refer to specific highlights from the narrative.

c. Table of Contents. Provide a complete inventory of report contents.

d. Introduction. Provide an overview of the project including its purpose. Identify the tracts inventoried for this project, by legal description in table form.

e. Literature Search. Provide a brief but complete discussion on the work that has been conducted in the project area.

f. Environmental and Cultural Setting. Provide a brief but complete overview of the environment in which the survey tracts are located. In addition, discuss the cultural setting, again briefly, including both the prehistoric and historic periods.

g. Inventory Results. Provide a summary description of each cultural property found. Indicate results from preliminary evaluation and any problems connected with the property's recordation. Include photographs of cultural properties located during the inventory (original or digital images). Use graphics and tables as appropriate.

h. Summary and Recommendations. Discuss the results of the inventory in summary form. Include the following:

i. Identify the sites recorded, whether the sites were prehistoric or historic, and what type of site is represented.

ii. Evaluate each cultural property for its eligibility to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Contractor shall use an appropriate "Context" in which to evaluate cultural properties and shall employ the National Register Criteria in those evaluations. Contractor shall clearly describe the rationale used to determine which sites are eligible, unevaluated, and not eligible. Contractor shall recommend treatment needed to determine eligibility on unevaluated sites.

i. References Cited. Include a list of all sources cited in report.

j. Appendices. Provide an appendix to incorporate typed unit forms and descriptions, copies of USGS maps with the depicted units, and photographs of individual units. Combine these elements (unit forms and descriptions, copies of USGS maps, and photographs) into separate unit summaries within the appendix.

k. Maps and Graphics. Provide appropriate maps, charts, tabulations and graphics necessary to support the report narrative. Maps, graphics, and photos in all copies of reports must show the same degree of detail as the electronic images.

VI. Deliverables (to be submitted to the COR)

A. The Contractor shall submit one draft copy of typed site forms with original photographs to the BLM for review prior to submission to the Montana SHPO for issuance of site numbers. Site form maps should have both the location of the cultural property described and the delineated survey unit plotted and labeled in black. Revisions of previously recorded sites should also be submitted at this time for review. After review and changes, if any, the Contractor will obtain site numbers.

B. One copy of the draft Class III cultural resource inventory report and one copy of draft unit forms.

C. One unbound original, plus three (3) bound copies of the final Class III cultural resource inventory report. The report shall be typed and printed on 8 ½ " x 11" paper and shall be single-spaced.

D. Two sets of final site forms with Smithsonian site numbers and with original black & white or color photos.

E. One copy of photographic record.

F. One copy of all field notes.

G. All catalog records and associated forms as specified by the Billings Curation Center packaging requirements.

H. Two electronic copies (CD or thumb drive) of the report, site forms, photos, photo log, GIS data and associated metadata. GIS data should contain, at a minimum, shapefiles of unit boundaries, area surveyed, and site boundaries.

VII. Period of Performance

A. Site file and literature search shall begin no later than 10 calendar days after the order has been issued and completed within 10 calendar days.

B. Contractor shall prepare a table summarizing the results of the inventory to the COR within ten days of completing fieldwork. The table shall contain unit number and results of inspection; i.e., indicate if cultural resources were located and recorded.

C. One copy of the draft Class III inventory report and the completed and typed site forms shall be submitted no later than October 15, 2015.

D. The COR will review all deliverables and comment on their adequacy within 20 calendar days of submission. All deliverables (including collected artifacts and associated documentation and a completed CRABS form) are due by December 31, 2015.

Map Reference

BLM Surface Management Status Map Winnett, Montana, and Sand Springs, Montana.

Legal Description

T16N R30E Sections 7, 18 T16N R29E Sections 2-4, 9-12, 14-15 T17N R29E Sections 32-33

Total Acres: 3,424

OPTIONAL: Crooked Creek Fuels Treatment Area

The Government reserves the right to award additional inventory acres without further competition. The second phase would consist of up to 6,500 acres in the Crooked Creek fuels treatment area – part of Unit D or Unit K – as shown on map “2015 Contract Expansion Possibilities”. The area is within the Musselshell Breaks, consisting of rolling hills and incised coulees. Site density has been relatively low, with a mix of sparse lithic scatters and agricultural/homestead-themed sites.

Should the optional acres in the Crooked Creek fuels treatment area be awarded, the requirements of this SOW would carry forward. The work schedule would be discussed and more detailed maps made available at the time of award.