Laserfiche WebLink
districts and isolated finds; to evaluate these surface finds for inclusion on the National <br />Register of Historic Places (NRHP); to determine the potential effect of the mining activities <br />on all NRHP- eligible resources; and to make recommendations for the mitigation of any <br />adverse effects on those resources. One of the significant reasons for this inventory is to <br />provide baseline data for USFS and BLM consultations with the State Historic Preservation <br />Officer (SHPO) and Native American Tribes on potential effects to cultural resources as a <br />result of the currently proposed action. <br />LOCATION OF THE PROJECT AREA <br />The study areas lie north of the town of Paonia, in Delta County, Colorado. The project <br />is located in T. 12 S., R. 91 W., Sections 31 and 32; and, T. 12 S., R. 92 W., Section 36; T. 13 <br />S., R. 91 W., Sections 5 and 6; and, T. 13 S., R. 92 W., Section 1; 6th P.M. (Figure 1). <br />ENVIRONMENT <br />The study area lies off the southeast corner of Grand Mesa, an 11,000 -foot high, flat - <br />topped mountain capped by basalt flows of late Miocene and early Pliocene age ca. 10 million <br />years old (Young and Young 1968). Cretaceous -age Mesaverde Formation sandstones and <br />coal- bearing rocks form the bedrock of the study area. <br />The survey area occurs in a single block that lies north of the town of Paonia, and that <br />is situated within and west of Terror Creek. Elevations in the study area range from 7280 to <br />8376 feet. The area is covered primarily in Transitional Zone brush including oakbrush, <br />serviceberry, and chokecherry. Other plant communities occur in the study area, although in <br />much smaller acreages and usually mixed with the brush, including fir and aspen forest, <br />riparian woodland, and grassland meadows. The region supports numerous wildlife species <br />including elk, deer, coyote, black bear, bobcat, ground squirrels, rabbits, and various raptors. <br />Climatically, the yearly average temperature is 32 to 45 degrees F., and there is a <br />maximum of 100 frost -free days in a year. Annual precipitation is about 18 to 20 inches <br />(USDA SCS 1976). Paleoenvironmental data for the area are scant, but it is agreed that gross <br />climatic conditions have remained fairly constant over the last 12,000 years. However, <br />changes in effective moisture and cooling /warming trends undoubtedly affected the prehistoric <br />occupation of the area. Prehistoric land use was primarily hunting and gathering, which had <br />little or no adverse affect on the local environment. Present day land use includes cattle <br />grazing, hunting, and coal mining development. <br />GEOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF REGIONAL PALEOCLIMATE CONDITIONS <br />Based on an analysis of the area's late Quaternary stratigraphy, the geologic history of <br />2 <br />