Paleontology

PALEONTOLOGY THAT IS PRECISE, TIMELY, AND REPUTABLE

Comply with regulatory requirements and meet your deadlines with Chronicle Heritage paleontology services.

Fossilized animals and plants have their own unique story to tell. By protecting these artifacts, Chronicle Heritage protects our collective story – and does so with the same care for your project’s compliance and deadline concerns.

We have a reputation for service-oriented paleontology consulting whatever your project stage. Our construction monitoring, GIS mapping, and field assessments, along with a host of other paleontology services will help your project stay on track. We are regulatory and technical experts in vertebrate paleontology, invertebrate paleontology, micropaleontology, paleobotany, and paleoethnobotany. We have successfully completed hundreds of paleontological resource investigations for public- and private-sector clients.

We respond quickly and efficiently to client needs in any geographic location. We hold active permits to conduct work on state and federal lands in the United States.

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Construction Monitoring

Chronicle Heritage provides construction monitoring services, including coverage for the pre- and post-construction phases.

We work cross-functionally between you, contractors, and regulators to make sure your project complies with the mitigation measures, permit requirements, and conditions of approval.

  • Before construction: A little prevention goes a long way. We love working with you to put plans in place that’ll help you prepare for, and minimize delays.
  • Worker training: We routinely prepare pre-construction Worker Environmental Awareness Program (WEAP) training and have trained thousands of workers.
  • Heavy equipment sites: We have tens of thousands of hours of experience working alongside heavy equipment and construction personnel.
  • Work flow: Our all-digital data collection tools, expert in-field fossil identification and significance determination, and rapid-response practices ensure that if paleontological materials are encountered, delays are minimized or eliminated altogether.
  • Safety record: Our safety record is impeccable.

We know the ins and outs of the federal, state, and local regulations, and we’ll bring this knowledge to our recommendations.

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Impact Assessments in Support of NEPA, CEQA, & Other Requirements

Our paleontologists at Chronicle Heritage are experts in the legal requirements governing paleontological resources. We are well positioned to consult with you on the implications of these legalities.

We are well-versed in the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Paleontological Resources Protection Act (PRPA), the California Environmental Policy Act (CEQA), as well as other relevant laws and regulations. We also have a close and regular working relationship with agencies, like the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the California Energy Commission (CEC), and others. And, our impact assessments adherence to the guidelines outlined in the PRPA and follow the specific requirements detailed in BLM Handbook H-8270-1 and Instructional Memorandum No. 2009-011.

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GIS Mapping

Chronicle Heritage has our own team of Geographic Information System (GIS) experts that are skilled at capturing geospatial data and interpreting that data to give you the information you need about your project area.

Our GIS mapping includes a streamlined approach in order to save you time and money. For example, we use the BLM’s (Bureau of Land Management) Potential Fossil Yield Classification system and geologic maps to create efficient and top-notch map sets for project areas. This allows us to speak the language of the federal government in order to get a quicker turnaround on approvals.
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Field Assessments and Surveys

Chronicle Heritage’s paleontologists are routinely out doing field assessments, identifying and documenting fossils on behalf of our clients.

When necessary, we will apply for the permits to recover these fossils if they’ll be adversely affected by your project.
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Mitigation Plans

Chronicle Heritage routinely prepares monitoring and mitigation plans for projects in sectors like power plant construction, solar and wind energy developments, oil and gas infrastructure, mining activities, transportation, and land development projects.

We are committed to excellence; this means we take time to critically analyze the mitigation requirements for each project, and then customize plans to meet those requirements. We apply our regulatory expertise so your project stays compliant, and onschedule.
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Fossil Salvage and Recovery

Our team at Chronicle Heritage is well-versed in fossil salvage and fossil recovery.

Our paleontologists are skilled in the surface collection of small fossils, as well as removing large fossils like partial skeletons. We are familiar with tight timelines and work efficiently to accommodate your construction schedules.

We are industry experts, sought out for our paleontology consulting knowledge in dinosaurs, vertebrates and invertebrates, and paleobotany.

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Museum Record and Literature Searches

Chronicle Heritage’s paleontologists are able to conduct museum record and literature searches on your behalf.

Many of our staff have worked at major museum repositories, maintaining excellent working relationships. These repositories include the Tate Geological Museum, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, and the Museum of the Rockies, to mention a few.

Additionally, because of our commitment to lead the industry through innovation, our paleontologists keep us on the forefront of scientific methods and publications.

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Geological Map Reviews

Chronicle Heritage is able to effectively read and interpret geological maps.

This is invaluable, because it means you get a streamlined paleontological assessment: we’ll help you focus your project efforts and costs so you know where to locate your construction efforts and where to minimize unnecessary field exploration.
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Fossil Pre-Curation

Chronicle Heritage is adept at laboratory preparation, fossil identification, and museum pre-curation to satisfy both federal and state requirements and individual museum stipulations.

We are well-positioned on two important fronts:

  • We have curation agreements with the museums in all the areas we service, which allows for efficient fossil curation practices.
  • We also have our own secure laboratory spaces that enable us to conduct matrix washing, microfossil picking, fossil specimen preparation and identification, and repair. We can also temporarily house paleontological collections.

We know the ins and outs of the federal, state, and local regulations, and we’ll bring this knowledge to our recommendations.

Cultural and Natural Heritage Management Solutions for Major Projects

Challenging projects enliven us – so bring us your project headache. We’ll partner with you all the way. And, we’ll start by bundling our services so you meet your milestones efficiently.
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Palen Solar Project

Chronicle Heritage was contracted by EDF Renewables for a solar project on land managed by the Bureau of Land Management in Riverside County, California. During the project’s construction phase, we successfully provided paleontological field staff ahead of the geotechnical studies and avoided project delays – even though paleontological monitors were a late requirement. We collected and documented 13 newly discovered vertebrate fossil localities yielding specimens that will be curated at the Western Science Center.
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