Cultural Resource Survey of the South Texas Syngas Directional Drill Locations Negative Findings Phase I Survey Report Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area Brazoria County, Texas

During October of 2014, Turpin and Sons Inc. (TAS) conducted a cultural resource assessment of two potential horizontal directional drill (HDD) locations and one additional baseline trench location along Jones Creek within the Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The area of interest is located along an existing pipeline corridor between the San Bernard and Brazos rivers in southwest Brazoria County, Texas. The project was sponsored by Gremminger and Associates Inc., acting as agents for Air Liquide Large Industries U.S. LP, and conducted under Texas Antiquities Permit Number 7029 issued to Dr. Jeff Turpin. The scope of work involved trenching potential HDD borehole locations to investigate possible impact to archeological material in the subsurface at depth. The field investigations consisted of the mechanical excavation of four trenches across two potential HDD locations, and one additional baseline trench approximately 130 m east of Jones Creek. Trenches were approximately 4 - 6 m long by 2 m wide and were dug to a depth of 0.90 - 1.30 m deep. The trenches were placed on the edges of 200 ft by 200 ft temporary work spaces in the only areas affected by ground disturbance. The remainder of the temporary workspace will be covered in laminated board skids to prevent ground disturbance. The trenches were examined for cultural remains by TAS staff, with geomorphological investigations performed by Brittney Gregory. No cultural resources were identified within the approximately 66 square meters of substrata examined, and geomorphological information suggests that the potential for intact buried cultural deposits in these areas is little to none. Based on the negative findings of trench examinations, TAS recommends no further work at the two potential HDD location. A preliminary report containing basic archeological and geomorphological summaries was provided to all vested parties immediately after fieldwork, and based on that report pipeline construction was allowed to proceed. What follows is a detailed report of the cultural resource assessment

Negative Findings Phase I Survey Report Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area Brazoria County, Texas

During October of 2014, Turpin and Sons Inc. (TAS) conducted a cultural resource assessment of two potential horizontal directional drill (HDD) locations and one additional baseline trench location along Jones Creek within the Justin Hurst Wildlife Management Area managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The area of interest is located along an existing pipeline corridor between the San Bernard and Brazos rivers in southwest Brazoria County, Texas. The project was sponsored by Gremminger and Associates Inc., acting as agents for Air Liquide Large Industries U.S. LP, and conducted under Texas Antiquities Permit Number 7029 issued to Dr. Jeff Turpin. The scope of work involved trenching potential HDD borehole locations to investigate possible impact to archeological material in the subsurface at depth. The field investigations consisted of the mechanical excavation of four trenches across two potential HDD locations, and one additional baseline trench approximately 130 m east of Jones Creek. Trenches were approximately 4 - 6 m long by 2 m wide and were dug to a depth of 0.90 - 1.30 m deep. The trenches were placed on the edges of 200 ft by 200 ft temporary work spaces in the only areas affected by ground disturbance. The remainder of the temporary workspace will be covered in laminated board skids to prevent ground disturbance. The trenches were examined for cultural remains by TAS staff, with geomorphological investigations performed by Brittney Gregory. No cultural resources were identified within the approximately 66 square meters of substrata examined, and geomorphological information suggests that the potential for intact buried cultural deposits in these areas is little to none. Based on the negative findings of trench examinations, TAS recommends no further work at the two potential HDD locations. A preliminary report containing basic archeological and geomorphological summaries was provided to all vested parties immediately after fieldwork, and based on that report pipeline construction was allowed to proceed. What follows is a detailed report of the cultural resource assessment

Negative Findings Report Cultural Resources Survey Fabens Lease 13031, University Lands El Paso County, Texas

On July 23, 2020, TAS Inc. conducted a cultural resource survey of a 10- acre tract intended to host a truck stop on the northwest corner of IH10 and FM 793 two miles northeast of the town of Fabens, in El Paso County, Texas. The project was sponsored by Ya Rehman, Ent, Inc. and was authorized by Texas Antiquities Permit 9518 with Jeff Turpin acting as Principal Investigator. The tract is a southwest-trending dune between two arroyos. The pavement and construction debris from an abandoned gasoline station occupy the southwestern corner. The current survey and shovel test regime found the remains of the gas station, but no new archeological evidence of any kind was discovered Consequently cultural resources present no obstacle to construction of the proposed truck stop, and justify a finding of “no effect”. However, if cultural material is encountered during the course of construction, work in that area should cease and the various regulatory agencies should be advised

Negative Findings Report Cultural Resource Survey Fabens Lease 1301, University Lands El Paso County, Texas

On July 23, 2020, TAS Inc. conducted a cultural resource survey of a 10- acre tract intended to host a truck stop on the northwest corner of IH10 and FM 793 two miles northeast of the town of Fabens, in El Paso County, Texas. The project was sponsored by Ya Rehman, Ent, Inc. and was authorized by Texas Antiquities Permit 9518 with Jeff Turpin acting as Principal Investigator. The tract is a southwest-trending dune between two arroyos. The pavement and construction debris from an abandoned gasoline station occupy the southwestern corner. The current survey and shovel test regime found the remains of the gas station, but no new archeological evidence of any kind was discovered Consequently cultural resources present no obstacle to construction of the proposed truck stop, and justify a finding of “no effect”. However, if cultural material is encountered during the course of construction, work in that area should cease and the various regulatory agencies should be advised

Negative Findings Cultural Resource Assessment Canyon Midstream Orange Pipeline Route University Lands Blocks 1 and 6 Reagan County, Texas

In June of 2017, Turpin and Sons Inc. (TAS) archeologists assessed the cultural resource potential of a proposed pipeline right-of-way (ROW) in southern Reagan County, Texas for Canyon Midstream Partners, LLC (Canyon). The Canyon Midstream Orange pipeline project covers a 2-mile (3,220 m) long by 100-ft-wide ROW with an area of potential effect (APE) of 24.25 acres. The survey was located southwest of Big Lake, south of the abandoned community of Texon. The work was carried out under the authority of Texas Antiquities Permit 8080 with Jeff Turpin acting as Principal Investigator. The Orange pipeline survey extended through University Lands Block 1, Section 4, and Block 6, Sections 2, and 3, crossing the midslope and upper valley of a rocky plateau. Modern land use is rangeland that has been disturbed by erosion and past clearing activity. The survey found a solitary dart point and scattered fire-cracked- rock (FCR) south of the current ROW. The FCR has been scattered by past clearing which dispersed the artifacts across a 400-m E/W by 50-m N/S area. The cultural material is south of the current ROW, dispersed between it and a caliche oilfield road. The lack of intact features and the considerable dam age inflicted by modern land use has left little of the site intact. The scattered artifacts were deemed an Isolated Find (IF) and do not warrant protection. The planned construction activity should be allowed to proceed

Negative Findings Report Cultural Resource Survey Comanche Trail Pipeline, LLC. San Elizario Crossing FERC Regulated Area El Paso County, Texas

During early May of 2015, TAS Inc. conducted a pedestrian survey and shovel testing of the Comanche Trail Pipeline, LLC (Comanche Trail) San Elizario Crossing in southeast El Paso County, Texas. The project will connect a natural gas pipeline in Texas with a natural gas pipeline in Mexico. Because of the international nature of the project, the survey fell under jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The survey area was located south and west of Chicken Ranch Road, 1.8 miles south of San Elizario and was confined to FERC regulated areas northeast of the Rio Grande. The project encompasses a staked right-of-way (ROW), as well as a Horizontal Directional Drill (HDD) location and temporary work space to be used to pull the pipe under the Rio Grande. HDD construction will occupy an area approximately 200 by 220 ft, with an additional 2,000-ft-long by 115-ft-wide temporary work space for an area of effect (APE) of 4.2 acres. An additional 1,000 by 100 ft section of proposed centerline between the HDD location and the Rio Grande brings the total area surveyed to 5.5 acres. No evidence of prehistoric or significant historic occupation or use was found by survey and shovel testing within the APE or along the staked ROW. The Texas Historical Commission subsequently requested backhoe trenching to confirm the absence of buried cultural deposits. In July, two 15-m-long trenches were dug to depths of 2 m each. Both were culturally sterile indicating that pipeline installation should not affect significant archeological or historical remains. A full description of the methods and results of trenching are reported in an addendum to the survey report

Counting the bodies: Estimating the numbers and spatial variation of Australian reptiles, birds and mammals killed by two invasive mesopredators

Aim Introduced predators negatively impact biodiversity globally, with insular fauna often most severely affected. Here, we assess spatial variation in the number of terrestrial vertebrates (excluding amphibians) killed by two mammalian mesopredators introduced to Australia, the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and feral cat (Felis catus). We aim to identify prey groups that suffer especially high rates of predation, and regions where losses to foxes and/or cats are most substantial. Location Australia. Methods We draw information on the spatial variation in tallies of reptiles, birds and mammals killed by cats in Australia from published studies. We derive tallies for fox predation by (i) modelling continental-scale spatial variation in fox density, (ii) modelling spatial variation in the frequency of occurrence of prey groups in fox diet, (iii) analysing the number of prey individuals within dietary samples and (iv) discounting animals taken as carrion. We derive point estimates of the numbers of individuals killed annually by foxes and by cats and map spatial variation in these tallies. Results Foxes kill more reptiles, birds and mammals (peaking at 1071 km−2 year−1) than cats (55 km−2 year−1) across most of the unmodified temperate and forested areas of mainland Australia, reflecting the generally higher density of foxes than cats in these environments. However, across most of the continent – mainly the arid central and tropical northern regions (and on most Australian islands) – cats kill more animals than foxes. We estimate that foxes and cats together kill 697 million reptiles annually in Australia, 510 million birds and 1435 million mammals. Main conclusions This continental-scale analysis demonstrates that predation by two introduced species takes a substantial and ongoing toll on Australian reptiles, birds and mammals. Continuing population declines and potential extinctions of some of these species threatens to further compound Australia's poor contemporary conservation record

Natural History Notes on Two Pilbara Endemic LIzards, Diporiphora Valens and Varanus Bushi, With Brief Comments on Survey Methodology

Volume: 28Start Page: 274End Page: 27

Data from: New populations of the black-flanked rock-wallaby (Petrogale lateralis) from the Little Sandy Desert and Murchison, Western Australia

During two independent fauna surveys, rock-wallaby (Petrogale) scats were recorded from caves located outside the current known Petrogale distribution. Scats collected from Desert Queen Baths (Little Sandy Desert, Western Australia, 2012), and the Barr Smith Range (Murchison, Western Australia, 2015) were genetically analysed and a follow-up motion camera survey confirmed an extant rock-wallaby population at Desert Queen Baths. The combination of sampling techniques overcame the detection difficulties associated with rare and cryptic taxa, and together were important in establishing the presence of Petrogale lateralis from regions where the species has been poorly documented. At both locations, P. lateralis scats were recorded from deep caves situated close to permanent water, reflecting the species’ physiological constraints in the arid zone. These records represent significant range extensions of a highly threatened macropod