Report of Class II Survey and Testing of Cultural Resources at the WIPP Site at Carlsbad, New Mexico

Description

Authors: Acklen, John C. and Bertram, Jack B.

Publisher: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Pub Date: 1987

Binding: Paperback

Condition:  Binding tight.  Previous owner’s name in ink on title page. Incised front cover torn, missing top and side edges.  Top of title page visible (see photo).  Partial title hand written on spine.  Edge and corner wear.

Notes: “In September of 1985, the Army Corps of Engineers, Albuquerque District, contracted Mariah Associates, Inc. to conduct a Class II cultural resource survey of approximately 3,100 acres in WIPP Zones III, IV, and V in Eddy County, New Mexico. A total of 40 archaeological sites was located; 11 were subsequently tested. Sites included probable PaleoIndian, Archaic, Mogollon, and Protohistoric camps. Seventy-five isolated artifacts were recorded. Ancillary studies included archaeological and historical interviews and archival research. Forty sites were recorded. Fourteen of these are considered definitely eligible and 24 sites are considered potentially eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. Present and potential impacts to these 38 sites are described. The sites are grouped and ranked according to research potential; data recovery strategies are detailed, also. The manager should note that included are two very large multicomponent sites, a possible PaleoIndian site, a single component Mogollon site, and five significant sites with high site integrity. All site categories are subject to more than one adverse impact, and data collection strategies differ greatly for each category. Should total avoidance prove infeasible, extensive data collection would be required.” (from the Abstract).   Archaeologists were looking at the past for this survey.  What might future generations be looking at when it comes to nuclear repositories?  “Oooh, look what I found!” he/she said, picking up some shiny (radioactive) sherd.  WIPP= Waste Isolation Pilot Plant

http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/green_room/2009/11/atomic_priesthoods_thorn_landscapes_and_munchian_pictograms.html