BLM-AK, CESU, Paleo Environmental Studies

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The BLM manages several million acres of land statewide as well as several thousand cultural and paleontological locations. Presently, the BLM Alaska Cultural and Paleontological staff has a limited ability to conduct specialized and detailed paleo-environmental analyses of these localities to obtain this kind of information as part of its management decision making. Therefore, the BLM needs to rely on an experienced partner institution in the CESU program to conduct detailed paleo-environmental analyses of cultural and non-cultural locations. These analyses would gather information about the timing of geological and ecological events that could have had a significant effect on prehistoric cultural or paleontological resources managed by the BLM in Alaska. The principal purpose/objective of this project is to collect, analyses, and curate paleo-environmental data obtained from environmental sampling through a variety of means. These means may include sediment coring, shovel testing, excavation or any other scientifically valid method for collecting paleo-environmental data. Analyses may include pollen analysis, soil chemistry, radiocarbon dating or any other scientifically valid laboratory analysis.

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