URARA - Nine Mile Canyon News

A couple of months ago we wrote about a proposal for gas exploration in Nine Mile Canyon by the Bill Barrett Corporation (BBC), the Seven Wells proposal. It was withdrawn due to public comments. It will not be rewritten but a new proposal will take its place and the EA for that will come out later. Now there is a new proposal by the BBC to conduct seismic testing using underground blasting and vibroseis or "thumper" trucks in the area south of Nine Mile Canyon. As you know, Nine Mile Canyon is a world-class corridor of archeology and rock art. Archeological resources in the canyon include those from Archaic, Barrier Canyon, Fremont, and Ute peoples. In short, the entire prehistory and early history of Utah is found in this canyon system. We continue to be concerned about impacts to the canyon and archeological resources in the area. This new proposal, known as Stone Cabin, was released by the BLM on Sept 2. Full details are available at the Utah State BLM webpage http://www.ut.blm.gov/stonecabin/default.htm. The Price office of the BLM may also still have printed copies of the EA to send out, or they will send you a CD. We have reviewed the Stone Cabin proposal and do not feel that there are as significant potential threats to rock art and other archaeological resources as in the previous proposal. However, there are issues to be addressed and we feel that it is important to be vigilant because BBC is not building a good reputation with the poor initial Seven Wells EA and by not being forthcoming with information. The purpose of the Stone Cabin seismic survey is to pinpoint the location of the gas resources so that wells can be drilled more accurately. No seismic activities will occur in the main Nine Mile Canyon, and only vibroseis buggies will be used in its side canyons, to reduce vibrations.

Vibrations

The EA contains an analysis of the strength of the vibrations produced by the testing. We asked the opinion of our member Ben Everitt, who works for the state of Utah as a geologist, regarding the danger to rock art and archaeological resources from vibrations. He thinks the vibrations from this study will be minimal. He points out that such techniques are much more sophisticated than in the past.

Proximity To Archeological Resources

This EA states that known archeological resources will be avoided by 300 feet. However, it also states that, as we well know, not all archeological resources in and around Nine Mile Canyon including rock art have been found, so some sites could be avoided by as little as 75 feet according to their figures-but that assumes that they found all archeological resources in their corridors on their survey. Archeologist Jerry Spangler who has worked in Nine Mile and Range Creek, which is close by, states that even of the sites that are known, a very small minority of sites in and around Nine Mile are recorded, and if they are not recorded for purposes like this EA they do not exist.

Supervision

The BLM promises supervision. But we know that the BLM is chronically shorthanded, and supervision has been less than optimal, in the past. The present drilling at Peters Point above the canyon has not been well supervised, and subcontractors have made a mess. But this is on state land-another problem, the hodgepodge of jurisdictions in the canyon and environs. There is BLM, State, and private land, and portions of the area are in Carbon County, and portions in Duchesne County. In addition, underground ownership may be different than surface ownership.

Road Traffic

One big ongoing problem is the road in Nine Mile Canyon. Truck traffic is noisy, creates dust that settles on the rock art, and this traffic generally deteriorates the road. Dust and exhaust emissions decrease the visibility of rock art and have potentially destructive effects on rock art. We believe that BBC should use the Sunnyside road for seismic testing. This road ascends the Tavaputs Plateau from Sunnyside, east of Wellington. It is a much shorter route to the area of interest on the plateau south of Nine Mile canyon and will reduce traffic in the canyon. The truck traffic will not end with the seismic study. As this vast gas field is developed it will only intensify. It seems appropriate to urge the BLM to require BBC to use the Sunnyside road for the gas well traffic rather than the road in Nine Mile Canyon.

National Register Of Historic Places

While Nine Mile Canyon has not yet been placed on the National Register of Historic Places, it has been deemed worthy of this designation and is, therefore, eligible for the protection afforded with this status. The area proposed for the National Register is from canyon rim to canyon rim of Nine Mile Canyon. As such, much of the proposed EA area of seismic impact is outside of the National Register location. However, work within Dry and Cottonwood Canyons would be inside areas deemed worthy of National Register protection.

Area of Critical Environmental Concern

The Vernal BLM office has put the canyon in an Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC). This applies to areas in Duchesne County. The Price office has not similarly designated areas of Nine Mile Canyon within its jurisdiction. We need to understand why this has not been done, and what impact ACEC status would have on the EA. All of the Stone Canyon EA proposed areas are outside of the current ACEC areas designated by the Vernal BLM.

What We Would Like You To Do

We hope that those concerned about rock art, and especially those who may be knowledgeable about the effect of vibration on rock art, will read the Stone Cabin EA. Please respond to the EA. Your response should include specific issues of concern and any recommendations that you have. Comments are due by Oct 2. We sent a protest on this 30-day period requesting an extension, as we did on the Seven Wells EA, but have been denied both times. Your comments should be sent to:

Bureau of Land Management
Price Field Office
Stone Cabin Environmental Assessment
125 South 600 West
Price, Utah 84501

Or they can be emailed through the following web location: http://www.ut.blm.gov/pricefo/stonecabin/comments.htm.

We hope you'll keep an eye on this developing, continuing problem in the Nine Mile area. If you need help understanding or responding to an EA, read the helpful Citizens Guide for Participation in Oil and Gas Decisions on Public Lands at http://www.ogap.org. This guide is also available by mail, send a check for $12 to Oil & Gas Accountability Project, P.O. Box 1102, Durango CO 81302. URARA has requested to be a consulting party to the EA so that we can have a more formal involvement. We have not received a response. The Utah Professional Archaeological Council and the Nine Mile Coalition were turned down on their requests to be included as consulting parties. Bill Walsh, the present chairman of Nine Mile said the BLM told him there was no appeal, but he found regulations he thinks covers such appeals.

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