ODOT Archaeology

1. ODOT Archaeology Environmental Services Section www.odot.state.or.us/eshtm/arch.htm

2. Overview • ODOT Archaeology • Laws & Regulations • Internal Processes • Coordination • Examples

3. Soil profile from Newberry Crater, near US 97. The light layer is 7,700 year old Mazama tephra. Archaeology at ODOT • Currently only 6% of the state has been systematically surveyed, and yet over 45,000 prehistoric and historic sites have been identified • ODOT currently has two archaeologists who cover the entire state • Surveys, technical reports, clearances and reviews are conducted by ODOT staff; excavation work is conducted by the Oregon State Museum of Anthropology (UofO) through an Intergovernmental Agreement

4. Why is ODOT involved? • Seven federal laws and three Oregon state laws regulate the protection of archaeological resources • It’s the right thing to do: • Tribal relationships • Stewardship responsibilities Living floor from Newberry Crater, ca. 9500 BCE

5. National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), Section 106: • Requires federally funded undertakings to take into account effects to cultural resources, including archaeological resources • Specifies a process and establishes criteria by which to evaluate cultural resources Sagebrush bark sandals from Fort Rock cave, ca. 9000 BCE

6. State Archaeological Laws: • ORS 358.905: Removal of archaeological material must be authorized by a permit issued through SHPO • ORS 390.235: Specifies that no permit will be issued without approval of state agency managing public land, and appropriate Indian Tribe(s) • ORS 97.740: Specifies penalties for disturbance of Indian graves and sacred objects; disturbance of graves including through inadvertence, must reinter at own expense

7. Celilo Falls, ca. 1900. Benjamin Gifford Tribal relationships: Senate Bill 770 • Codifies executive order 96-30 • Formally acknowledges the sovereignty of Oregon’s Tribes • Specifies a government-to-government relationship with Oregon’s Tribes and agencies of the State of Oregon • Requires communication and education between state agencies and tribes

8. SB 770: ODOT Processes • Quarterly update meetings are held with five of Oregon’s Tribes, and close coordination occurs with remaining Tribes on an as-needed basis • ODOT staff and management are members of executive order 96-30 cultural resource and economic development cluster committees Camas oven at the Mill Creek site, I-5 interchange, Salem • Environmental Services is partnering with the Grand Ronde Tribes’ cultural resources staff on developing a state-wide agency training program

9. Stewardship and Government-to-Government Relationships • Coordination and positive relationships with Oregon’s Tribes are critical for success of projects involving archaeological resources • Regulations consider a resource’s information potential; prehistoric sites possess a cultural significance for the Tribes that transcends information value • Tribes view natural resources as cultural resources. Coordination on environmental work ensures positive working relationships

10. Internal Processes • ODOT archaeology staff are involved early in project development, and continue outreach and coordination with maintenance staff • Protective measures help avoid resource conflicts and minimize project costs Petroglyph-Pictograph, Cascadia Cave, OR 20 • New specifications for the protection of cultural sites facilitate regulatory and Tribal concurrence

11. Potential range of impacts: Ground disturbance: • Staging of equipment and material, material sources • Embankment • Guardrail installation/flaring • Culvert extensions, etc.

12. Protective Measures: No work zones • Cost: in most circumstances no work zones satisfy federal regulations and Tribal concerns without further cost, time • Visibility: demonstrates ODOT’s commitment to protecting sensitive areas to Tribes and Regulators

13. Protective Measures: Specifications 00170.51: Protection of Cultural Sites • Lists federal and state laws that address protection of cultural resources on the job • Details protective measures to maintain and consequences of disturbance • Streamlines the process for regulatory buy-off

14. Dr. Dennis Jenkins (UofO) exposing stone tools in pre-Mazama sediments at Paulina Lake Site. Inter-agency coordination • Memorandum of Understanding under development with the Forest Service • Programmatic Agreement with State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) • Intergovernmental Agreement with the University of Oregon

15. Example: Hood River - Mosier, Historic Columbia River Highway Rehabilitation of HCRH near Mosier Twin Tunnels Close collaboration with Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, State Parks, and the State Historic Preservation Office West Portal, Mosier twin tunnels ca. 1935

16. Example: Hood River - Mosier, Historic Columbia River Highway Project avoided resource through collaboration and willingness to explore design options ODOT, Warm Springs and State Parks have been recognized both state-wide and nationally for their collaborative efforts in protecting the resource Mosier Mounds Site, Wasco County Currently developing nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, with support from the Warm Springs and Yakama Tribes.

17. Contacts: Hal Gard, RPA Environmental Services Office: (503) 986-3508 Cell: (503) 551-1611 Kirsten Anderson, RPA Environmental Services Office: (503) 986-3512 Cell: (503) 508-6707 www.odot.state.or.us/eshtm/arch.htm