As existing highway systems age and require upgrades and new routes become necessary, Applied EarthWorks provides assistance to federal, state, and local transportation departments for the management of cultural resources that may be affected by these improvements. Our staff is well-versed in the federal and state requirements associated with transportation projects and has coordinated effectively with the California Department of Transportation on numerous projects. In addition to experience in road improvements and bridge replacements for numerous cities and counties, Applied EarthWorks has completed cultural and paleontological resources studies for upgrades to existing railroads and the ongoing development of California High Speed Rail.
Representative Projects
Alameda Corridor Transportation Project
Alameda Corridor Engineering Team
Los Angeles, California
The Alameda Corridor Transportation Project encompasses a 22-mile freight rail line that parallels Alameda Street from the Port of Los Angeles to downtown Los Angeles. Throughout the construction period, Æ has coordinated all cultural resource studies with the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority, California Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, Federal Highways Administration, State Office of Historic Preservation, and other agencies.
Numerous important archaeological resources have been identified during construction monitoring along the project route that required individualized treatment measures, including the careful exhumation of 11 burials from a Native American cemetery prior to construction. Æ also documented the contents of numerous privies and refuse deposits associated with one of the city’s last Victorian subdivisions and the Casella Ranch Complex as well as several deposits associated with the historic 1890s Spanishtown. Project archaeologists also investigated features and archaeological deposits related to the historical Florence, Compton, and Watson railroad stations.
Æ also developed a Construction Manager’s Cultural Resources Training Program and designed and implemented an American Indian Monitoring Training Program to assure that cultural resources were properly identified in the field by construction personnel.
Key Services
Environmental Impact Consultation (CEQA / NEPA)
Coordination with State and Federal Regulatory Agencies
Native American Consultation and Coordination
Testing and Evaluation for National Register Eligibility
Geomorphology and Paleontology
Data-Recovery Excavation and Mitigation
Construction Monitoring and Emergency Archaeology
Laboratory Processing and Data Analysis
Collections Management
California High-Speed Rail Project
Tutor Perini/Zachary/Parsons, URS, and AECOM for the California High-Speed Rail Authority
Fresno, Madera, and Los Angeles Counties, California
Æ was retained to assist URS Corporation (now AECOM) in the preparation of archaeological and paleontological technical studies, along with an Environmental Impact Report / Environmental Impact Statement for the California High Speed Rail Project, Palmdale to Burbank Segment. Cultural resource and paleontological studies were completed in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act on behalf of the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the California High-Speed Rail Authority. For archaeological resources, a records search review was conducted, and ethnographic studies were completed in an effort to identify Traditional Cultural Properties and landscapes of significance to Native Americans and other traditional/cultural groups that might be impacted directly or indirectly by project development and operation. For paleontological resources, baseline studies were completed that included a museum locality record search and literature review that informed development of a paleontological sensitivity model for the High Speed Rail corridor. Since 2015, Æ has also provided ongoing paleontological resources construction monitoring for the High Speed Rail Construction Package 1 (CP1) in Madera and Fresno Counties.
KEY SERVICES
Coordination with County, State, and Federal Regulatory Agencies
Historic Properties Treatment Planning
Native American Consultation and Coordination
Museum Record Searches
Geomorphology and Geoarchaeology
Paleontological Resources Environmental Training
Construction Monitoring
GIS: Digitization of the Geology and Paleontological Sensitivity of the Project Corridor
California Department of transportation District 8 On-call Cultural resources Services
Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, California
Since 1999, Æ has been awarded, under six separate procurements, the sole on-call services contract for cultural resource for Caltrans, District 8, Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. Since the initial award, Æ has completed more than 55 individual task orders for a total project amount of $3,312,103.
Under this contract, Æ provided cultural resource services for projects such as: dozens of Phase I surveys in support of roadway widening, realignment, repaving, and emergency repair projects; paleontology identification and evaluation reports; paleontological monitoring for a slope repair project; data recovery, remote sensing, and archival research for the State Route 138 Highway Realignment Project through Crowder Canyon; buried site testing, data recovery excavations, and a canine forensics survey for an expressway project in Hinkley; a geophysical investigation (remote sensing) and extended phase I testing for a bridge replacement project at Hurkey Creek; and testing and an environmentally sensitive area (ESA) action plan for a road realignment project near Kramer Junction. For these projects, Æ performed cultural resource records searches and literature reviews; archival research; pedestrian and reconnaissance surveys; testing and evaluation for NRHP and CRHR listing eligibility; Native American consultation and coordination; coordination with local and federal agencies (such as the BLM and U.S. Forest Service); data recovery excavations; curation preparation; construction monitoring; and architectural assessments. Compliance with the California Desert Conservation Area Plan and the West Mojave Plan were required for Caltrans projects located on federal lands managed by the BLM. Regulatory documents produced for these projects include, but are not limited to, Archaeological Survey Reports, Historic Resources Evaluation Reports, Historic Properties Survey Reports , California Archaeological Resources Identification and Data Acquisition Program: Sparse Lithic Scatters Reports, Extended Phase I Reports, Paleontological Resources Identification Reports, Paleontological Resources Evaluation Reports, Paleontological Mitigation Plans and Paleontological Monitoring Reports.
Key Services
Coordination with County, State, and Federal Regulatory Agencies
Historic Properties Treatment Planning
Native American Consultation and Coordination
Data-Recovery Excavation and Mitigation
Geomorphology and Geoarchaeology
Paleontology
Construction Monitoring and Emergency Archaeology
Laboratory Processing and Data Analysis
Collections Management
Friant Road Improvement Project
County of Fresno Department of Public Works and Planning
Fresno County, California
The Friant Road Improvement Project encompasses the reconstruction and widening of approximately 8 miles of Friant Road and a small section of North Fork Road in Fresno County. Æ performed cultural resource investigations to identify historic properties within the Area of Potential Effects of the undertaking. Studies for this project was carefully designed to comply with the policies and procedures of the County of Fresno, California Department of Transportation, and the Federal Highway Administration. Native American consultation and coordination were also important components of the compliance process.
Æ completed several cultural resource studies throughout the duration of the project. Initial archaeological and architectural surveys identified five historical archaeological sites, including the Pollasky Railroad Grade and Pollasky School, 14 buildings predating 1957, and a bridge. Subsequent evaluation showed that none of these resources are eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. Previous investigations in the project vicinity had identified two buried prehistoric archaeological sites. Applied EarthWorks’ performed Extended Phase 1 excavations to determine if deposits associated with these sites lay within the Friant Road project area.
To assist the Fresno County in satisfying the requirements of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, Æ prepared numerous documents during the course of the project. Timeliness, cost containment, and close communication with the agencies were critical aspects of the successful completion of the cultural resources studies for the Friant Road Improvement Project.
Key Services
Archaeological Field Survey
Architectural Survey and Evaluation for National Register Eligibility
Extended Phase-1 Excavation
Coordination with Local, State, and Federal Agencies
Native American Consultation and Coordination
Archival and Historical Research