DOE/EIS-0332; McNary-John Day Transmission Line Project Draft ...

Previous Cultural Resources Studies
BPA McNary-John Day Transmission Project
Draft EIS
February 2002
Cultural Resources
Over 600 archaeological sites are recorded within the Mid-Columbia Study Unit (Galm et
al. 1987). These sites have been documented as a result of the last 100 years of
archaeological surveys and fieldwork along the Columbia River and then subsequently
along the shores of the John Day Reservoir (Lake Umatilla). Spanning from the Euro-
American exploration of the Columbia River by Lewis and Clark in 1805 to the
Smithsonian Institute River Basin Surveys during the early and mid-1900s and through
recent federal undertakings that necessitated cultural resources assessments, a rich picture
of the culture history devolution has been developed for the Mid-Columbia Study Unit.
The cultural resource studies of the John Day Reservoir can be divided into three periods
(Dickson 1999). The first period of investigation extended from 1886 to 1958. During
the second period (1958 to 1969), the University of Oregon’s David Cole and others
excavated sites ahead of the rising waters behind the John Day Dam. The third period
covers the last 32 years (1969 to present) of research along the shoreline of the reservoir
in an effort to document and/or salvage sensitive resources that were/are being impacted
within the lake’s fluctuation zone. (Dickson 1999).
There have been four cultural surveys along various parts of the McNary-John Day
Transmission Line corridor for construction of other lines or tower relocations. Surveys
were also conducted near and around the town of Roosevelt with the development of the
Rebanco Regional Landfill.
Recent cultural resource work in the area continues to be driven by the economic growth
and development of the Mid-Columbia Region. Wind power projects, cellular tower
sitings, and upgrades to existing utility corridor facilities constitute the majority of
projects that might impact sensitive sites and resources. The focus of work along the
shoreline of Lake Umatilla remains the paramount issue in the on-going preservation of
the Mid-Columbia’s cultural resources.
The archaeological database in the McNary to John Day Transmission Line corridor
includes a wide range of resource types in a variety of settings. All hunter-fisher-gatherer
villages and campsites are near water sources such as springs, streams, or the Columbia
River. Special purpose sites, such as plant gathering/processing stations, can occur in
areas away from water. Hunter-fisher-gatherer rock features and natural silica rock
outcrops have been documented throughout the region on steep slopes and the nearvertical
faces and horizontal flow tops of basalt outcrops. Hunter-fisher-gatherer
campsites and low-density lithic scatters are common on alluvial floodplains in the
narrow stream valleys that dissect the massive basalt-flow landforms north of the
Columbia River.
Based on an assessment of environmental characteristics such as distance to water, type
of substrate, landform type, and amount of previous disturbance, as well as the
distribution patterns of recorded sites along the McNary to John Day Transmission
Project corridor, the proposed transmission line is in a high probability area for hunter-
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