ECORP provided cultural resources services for the proposed Daggett Ridge Wind Farm located in the hills south of Barstow and Daggett on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to assess potential effects to cultural resources from the proposed construction of the wind farm, substation, and fiber optic line.
Three separate surveys were conducted, including:
- An inventory of 800 acres for the geotechnical testing required to determine appropriate wind turbine locations
- A survey of 11 linear miles for the proposed Seagett-Tortilla fiber optic line associated with the wind farm
- A survey of 1,500 acres for the proposed turbine locations not already surveyed and the associated access roads and proposed substation location
The study began with record searches to identify the extent of previous surveys in the area and to determine if there were any known cultural resources in the vicinity. An in-house records search was conducted at the San Bernardino Archaeological Information Center located at the San Bernardino County Museum in Redlands. A search of the Sacred Lands File for the project area was also conducted with the Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC) in Sacramento.
A total of 38 archaeological sites were identified during the surveys. Each site was recorded and mapped following standard archaeological recordation techniques. Site data was delivered to BLM in Geographic Information System (GIS) format using BLM standards and guidelines. Two technical reports were then prepared:
- One for the Seagett-Tortilla fiber optic line survey
- One for the surveys of the geotechnical testing, wind farm, access roads, and substation
Each report summarized the environmental and cultural setting of the region and described all recorded archaeological sites in detail. They also discussed the methods and results of the records search, Sacred Lands File Search, and field survey with a preliminary evaluation of eligibility to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) included for all 38 recorded cultural resources within the surveyed areas.
As a result of the preliminary evaluations, several sites were recommended as eligible for inclusion in the NRHP. Management recommendations were then developed in consultation with BLM to avoid adverse effects to the NRHP-eligible cultural resources. Site records were included in the technical reports as an appendix. The reports were submitted to the Client and BLM for review. All work was completed under ECORP’s Cultural Resources Use Permit issued by the California State Office of BLM for cultural resources work on BLM lands throughout the State of California.
