Idaho National Laboratory Cultural Resource Management Plan

esource base and enhance long-term planning, overall management, and predictive modeling as a tool for
land use decision-making. Since 1984, all archaeological surveys at INL have followed a consistent set of
standards and procedures to ensure consistency and replicability.
Nearly two decades of on-the-ground investigations have demonstrated that INL archaeological
resources are easily identified through pedestrian survey methods. Even in active geomorphological
settings (e.g., after range fires and in the dune fields within the bed of Pleistocene Lake Terreton), INL
archaeological resources that span all time periods of human habitation are densely concentrated on the
existing surface of the ground (40–50 resources per square mile). Nearly all appear to have some surface
manifestation that can be identified and initially assessed by a pedestrian survey crew. Experience has
shown that survey intervals of 15–20 meters are ideal for identifying 90–100% of archaeological
resources at INL.
The first step in completing an archaeological survey at INL is to establish the boundaries of the area
to be surveyed. This will vary tremendously according to the needs of each particular project. For projectspecific
archaeological surveys, the entire area of potential effect for the proposed project is always
intensively examined and inventoried. Research-oriented surveys will follow the guidelines of a specific
research design to establish survey boundaries. Global Positioning System (GPS) technology has proven
to be very helpful in establishing the boundaries of all archaeological survey units as well as the
archaeological sites identified within them.
To identify archaeological resources within the defined survey area, archaeological survey crews
systematically walk over the area in skirmish line fashion. Spacing between individuals in the skirmish
line should not exceed 20 meters, and temporary flagging tape or pin-flag markers are employed to ensure
that an area is completely examined. Notations of survey transect orientation, survey participants, field
and weather conditions, and other details deemed pertinent are also documented by the survey crew
leader.
When cultural materials are encountered during the course of a survey, intensive searches in the
vicinity are used to ascertain the boundaries of the resource and pinpoint diagnostic artifacts, artifact
concentrations, cultural features, landmarks, and any areas of post-depositional disturbance. The survey
crew leader assigns a temporary field number to the resource and establishes its geographic coordinates.
Prior to conducting formal recording procedures, identified resources are classified generally as
“isolates” or “sites,” a distinction that applies to all archaeological materials at INL, including prehistoric
(>150 years old), historic (50–150 years old), and industrial (