2007-08-17_PERMIT FILE - C1981035 (38)

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• INTRODUCTION A Class III cultural resource inventory of approximately 200 acres (80.8 ha) was carried out for National King Coal on two parcels overlying proposed underground coal mining operations in the Hay Gulch area, southwest of Hesperus, La Plata County, Colorado. Both are privately owned by Lawrence Huntington and are part of the Huntington Ranch, with federal subsurface minerals. The survey was carried out on July 10 and 11, 1997 by Laurens C. and Nancy S. Hammack of Complete Archaeological Service Associates (CASA). This project area overlies a portion of a coal seam currently being mined by National King Coal from their mine in the northwest corner of Section 32. All mining beneath the survey parcels will be at a depth of 300 feet in underground workings and will not involve any disturbance to the surface. The only possible effect to the surface may be minor subsidence, which is monitored on a monthly basis by the Office of Surface Mining. This project was carried out at the request of the Office of Surface Mining in compliance with applicable historic preservation legislation and laws. The field work, on private lands, was undertaken under the provisions of BLM CRUP No. C-39285, issued to CASA. EFFECTIVE ENVIRONMENT The project area is located in a series of southwest trending mesas and ridges interspersed with deep intermittent drainages to the La Plata River Valley. Elevation ranges from 7260 ft In Pine Gulch to 7620 ft on the mesa top. Soils are shallow silts over sandstone bedrock. Pinyon- juniper woodland with scrub oak, sagebrush and various shrubs and perennials is the major • vegetation community. The current and paleoenvironment of the general area has been summarized in detail in Chenault (1996). Parcel A includes the southeast slope of a flat mesa top, portions of Pine Gulch, and a narrow north-facing strip of the opposite ridge (Figure 3). The mesa top has been chained and burned in the past and is presently used for sparse grazing. A faint track road extends down the mesa. Parcel B Includes the head of Barnes Canyon, and the mesa south to the drop-off into Pine Gulch. This area is pristine pinyon juniper woodland which is currently used for grazing. CULTURAL HISTORY AND PREVIOUS RESEARCH Background data on the cultural history and previous research of the general area has been recently summarized in Chenault (1996). Volume 1 of this series summarizes the Class 2 inventory of the Mancos and La Plata river basins for the proposed Animas-La Plata irrigated lands project. One of the sample units, D-l, was approximately 3 miles south of the current project area. No cultural resources were located within this quarter section. Previous research in the specific project area has been limited to an inventory of 60 acres less than one-half mile north of the present survey parcels. This area, on Ute Mountain Ute lands, was also surveyed for expansion of National King Coal mines and no cultural resources were located. Based on previous inventories, few cultural resources were expected in the survey areas. Due to the elevation and distance from water, sites were expected to be limited to historic homesteads or prehistoric hunting losses or temporary hunting camps. Evaluation of prehistoric sites was based on Eddy, Kane and Nickens' (1984) regional research design, while historic themes presented by Husband (1984) and Buckles and Buckles (1984) were used to assess historic resources. 2 .~..__.~ July 1997 --- - - - ~.