DRAFT CULTURAL RESOURCES INVENTORY REPORT FOR THE PROPOSED RECURRENT ENERGY CINCO SOLAR FACILITY PROJECT KERN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA Prepared for and Submitted to: RE Barren Ridge 1, LLC 300 California Street, 8th Floor San Francisco, California 94104 Prepared by: Stephanie Jow, M.A., and Theodore G. Cooley, M.A., RPA With contributions by: Rebecca Apple, M.A., RPA Jamie Cleland, Ph.D., RPA Brian Spelts, B.A. AECOM 1420 Kettner Boulevard, Suite 500 San Diego, California 92101 (619) 233-1454 July 2014 Survey Area: 600 acres USGS Quadrangles: Mojave NE, Mine 7.5" Keywords: Archaeological Survey, Inventory Report, California City, Mojave Desert, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Kern County, Solar Facility, P-15-016275, CA-S-H-001, CS-S-H-002, CS-S-H-003, CS-S-H-004, CS-S-H-005, CS- S-H-006, CS-S-H-008, CS-S-H-020, CS-S-H-021, CS-S-H-022, CS-S-H-023, CS-S-H-024, CS-S-H-027, CS-S-H- 028 RE Cinco Solar Facility Project Cultural Resources Inventory Report Page i Page ii RE Cinco Solar Facility Project Cultural Resources Inventory Report TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................... vii CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 1 Project Description ................................................................................................................ 1 Regulatory Setting ................................................................................................................. 1 Area of Potential Effects (APE)............................................................................................. 4 Project Personnel ................................................................................................................... 7 Report Organization ............................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 2 – PROJECT SETTING ............................................................................................. 9 Natural Context ...................................................................................................................... 9 Physiography and Geology ........................................................................................... 9 Climate and Hydrology ............................................................................................... 10 Flora and Fauna........................................................................................................... 10 Geomorphology and Subsurface Deposits .................................................................. 11 Geomorphological Setting .......................................................................................... 11 Geological Units ......................................................................................................... 13 Project Geomorphology and the Potential for Buried Deposits.................................. 14 Cultural Context ................................................................................................................... 16 Prehistory .................................................................................................................... 16 Ethnographic Background .......................................................................................... 18 History......................................................................................................................... 19 CHAPTER 3 – ARCHIVAL RESEARCH AND CONTACT PROGRAM ................................ 25 Records Search .................................................................................................................... 25 Previous Studies .......................................................................................................... 25 Previously Recorded Cultural Resources.................................................................... 25 Other Archival Research ............................................................................................. 27 Contact Program .................................................................................................................. 33 Native American Contact Program ............................................................................. 33 CHAPTER 4 – METHODOLOGY .............................................................................................. 41 Survey Methods ................................................................................................................... 41 Documentation ............................................................................................................ 42 Site Types ............................................................................................................................ 42 Prehistoric Site Types ................................................................................................. 42 Historic Site Types ...................................................................................................... 43 Isolated Finds .............................................................................................................. 44 Research Issues and Themes ................................................................................................ 45 Research Issues – Prehistoric Archaeological Sites .................................................... 45 Research Issues – Historic Sites ................................................................................. 53 RE Cinco Solar Facility Project Cultural Resources Inventory Report Page iii CHAPTER 5 – ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY RESULTS ..................................................... 55 Previously Recorded Sites ................................................................................................... 56 Newly Recorded Sites .......................................................................................................... 57 Isolated Finds .............................................................................................................. 67 Secondary Deposits ..................................................................................................... 68 Built Environment Resources ..................................................................................... 70 CHAPTER 6 – SUMMARY AND MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS ....................... 71 Summary .............................................................................................................................. 71 Recommendations ................................................................................................................ 72 CHAPTER 7 – REFERENCES .................................................................................................... 75 APPENDICES A Resumes B Records Search (Confidential – Separately Bound) C Native American Contact Program D Survey Results (Confidential – Separately Bound) E DPR Forms (Confidential – Separately Bound) Page iv RE Cinco Solar Facility Project Cultural Resources Inventory Report LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page Figure 1 Regional Setting of the Project Area ............................................................................ 2 Figure 2 RE Cinco Project Overview .......................................................................................... 3 Figure 3 Direct Effects APE ........................................................................................................ 5 Figure 4 Indirect Effects APE ..................................................................................................... 6 Figure 5 Historic USGS Topographic Maps (1915, 1943) ....................................................... 29 Figure 6 Historic USGS Topographic Maps (1956, 1973) ....................................................... 31 Figure 7 Historic Roads ............................................................................................................. 65 Figure 8 Secondary Deposit in Southeast Corner of Project Area ............................................ 69 LIST OF TABLES Table Page Table ES-1. Summary of Archaeological Resources in the Project .............................................. ix Table 1. Major Climatic Intervals ................................................................................................. 12 Table 2. Summary of Geologic Units in the Gen-Tie Corridor .................................................... 14 Table 3. Radiocarbon Results from Area Adjacent to Gen-Tie Corridor ..................................... 16 Table 4. Cultural Resources Investigations within 1 Mile of the Project ..................................... 26 Table 5. Previously Recorded Cultural Resources within 1 Mile of the Project .......................... 27 Table 6. Historical Maps ............................................................................................................... 28 Table 7. NAHC Native American Contact Log ............................................................................ 33 Table 8. Class III Survey Native American Contact Log ............................................................. 36 Table 9. Sites Identified in the Direct Effects APE ...................................................................... 56 Table 10. Isolates Recorded in the Direct Effects APE ................................................................ 67 Table 11.