Merced County Streams Project California Intensive Cultural Resources Survey Downstream Channel Improvements PDF Download

This project is a cultural resource study of Burns Reservoir. The area to be impacted comprises 2,310 acres, including the gross pool of the proposed reservoir, as well as associated construction features. Seventeen resources were found and recorded, five of which had been recorded earlier. These included prehistoric middens, lithic scatters, and isolated bedrock mortar loci. The historic resources found were stone structures and walls. The richness and uniqueness of the resources, particularly the prehistoric, indicate that nomination to the National Register of Historic Places is appropriate for six of the resources. The alternatives for mitigation of adverse impact are predicated upon the status of the project, the projected impacts, and the nature of the resources. There are two kinds of impacts expected, inundation and destruction by construction operations. Preservation was emphasized as the best mitigation alternative; if not possible, then a two-phase testing measure program is proposed based upon the degree of expected impacts.