[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 51 (Wednesday, March 16, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-6094]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: March 16, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
[OR-014-6350-02; G4-098]

 

Draft Upper Klamath Basin Resource Management Plan and 
Environmental Impact Statement; Availability

ACTION: Notice of Availability, Draft Upper Klamath Basin Resource 
Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of the Interior through the Bureau of Land 
Management (BLM) gives notice of the availability of the Draft Upper 
Klamath Basin Resource Management Plan and Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) for review and public comment. The EIS was prepared 
pursuant to section 102 (2)(c) of the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA) of 1969, as amended, section 202(f) of the Federal Land Policy 
and Management Act of 1976, and the BLM's planning procedures (43 CFR 
1610). The RMP/EIS analyzes the effects of converting land of the newly 
acquired Wood River property, approximately 3,220 acres in Klamath 
County, Oregon, into a functioning wetland community.
    Preparation of the Upper Klamath Basin Resource Management Plan and 
Environmental Impact Statement (RMP/EIS) is a separate process from the 
on-going Klamath Falls Resource Area Resource Management Plan and 
Environmental Impact Statement process. Although both plans will be 
comparable (that is, guiding future management actions in specified 
areas), they are being prepared separately due to the geographical 
distance between the Wood River property and the rest of the BLM-
administered lands in the Resource Area.
    Copies of the draft RMP/EIS may be obtained from the Klamath Falls 
Resource Area office, 2795 Anderson Ave. Bldg. 25, Klamath Falls, 
Oregon. Copies will also be available at the following locations:

BLM Lakeview District office, 1000 South 9th St., Lakeview, OR 97630
BLM Office of Public Affairs, Main Interior Building, room 5600, 18th 
and C Street NE., Washington DC 20240
BLM Oregon State office, 1300 N.E. 44th Avenue, Portland, OR 97213
Klamath County Public Library, 126 South 3rd St., Klamath Falls, OR 
97601
Oregon Institute of Technology Library, 3201 Campus Drive, Klamath 
Falls, OR 97601

    Public meetings on the draft plan will be announced in the local 
print media. Information on the public meetings can also be obtained by 
calling Cathy Humphrey at (503) 885-4110.

DATES: The public comment period on the RMP/EIS will be 90 days. 
Written comments on the draft must be submitted or postmarked no later 
than May 31, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be addressed to A. Barron Bail, Area 
Manager, Bureau of Land Management, Klamath Falls Resource Area, 2795 
Anderson Ave. Bldg 25, Klamath Falls, Oregon 97603.

CONTACT FOR FURTHER INFORMATION :Write to the above address or call 
Cathy Humphrey at (503) 885-4110.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The RMP/EIS describes and analyzes four 
alternatives for BLM-administered lands in the Upper Klamath Basin to 
address the goal of wetland restoration. The alternatives include a No 
Action alternative (continuation of current management) which does not 
include wetland restoration, and three alternatives that do include 
wetland restoration. In all four alternatives the following issues were 
addressed: fish and wildlife habitat, special status species habitat, 
recreation opportunities, access, water resources, wetland restoration, 
livestock grazing, and public involvement.
    The No Action Alternative would maintain the current use of the 
property as predominantly for livestock grazing in an irrigated 
pasture. Livestock grazing would remain at current levels. Water would 
be pumped off in the spring at current schedules. The amounts of 
upland, wet meadow, and marsh habitat would remain constant. Recreation 
facilities would not be developed. Recreation use, limited to day use 
only, would neither be encouraged nor restrained and the area would 
remain closed to motorized vehicles.
    Alternative B would restore the Wood River Property to a 
functioning wetland with diverse plant communities and healthy, 
productive vegetation. Initial management actions could require highly 
engineered techniques, such as restoring the Wood River and Sevenmile 
Creek to their historic meandering channels; however, in the long term, 
wetland restoration systems and methods would be designed for minimum 
maintenance using the existing landscape features. The minimum 
maintenance methods used would vary, but could include such tools as 
grazing, prescribed fire, and mechanical vegetation manipulation. Some 
recreation facilities would be developed. Recreation use and some 
motorized access would be allowed, but would be limited to certain 
areas and times of day.
    Alternative C would also restore the Wood River property to a 
functioning wetland with diverse plant communities and healthy, 
productive vegetation. However, initial and long-term restoration 
actions could involve highly engineered techniques. The methods used 
for wetland restoration could include experimental techniques, such as 
artificial water circulation, or other constructed wetlands. General 
design principles could be complex. The research would encompass both 
the methods used for wetland restoration and the examination of the 
effects of restoration on water quality and quality and quantity, fish 
and wildlife habitat, etc. Recreation would be limited to day use only. 
Development of recreation facilities would emphasize wetland 
restoration education. Various tools, such as grazing, prescribed fire, 
and mechanical manipulation of vegetation, could be used to meet the 
goals of this alternative.
    A Preferred Alternative was chosen, Alternative D, which would 
restore the Wood River property to its previous form and function as a 
wetland community, within unalterable constraints (such as existing 
dikes, water rights, land ownership patterns, and funds). Labor-
intensive, highly engineered wetland restoration methods using complex 
designs would be allowed; however, the preference would be to use 
wetland restoration systems and methods that were designed with less 
labor-intensive practices using the existing landscape features. Long-
term improvements in water quality entering Agency Lake would be a 
goal. Adaptive management, the process of changing land management as a 
result of monitoring or research, would be used.
    The Preferred Alternative would emphasize improving an increasing 
wetland habitat for federally listed fish species. It would also 
protect habitats of federally listed or proposed threatened or 
endangered species to avoid contributing to the need to list category 1 
and 2 federal candidate, state listed, and Bureau sensitive species. 
This alternative would emphasize management of special status species, 
including a complete inventory for these species, and maintain a 
diversity of habitats to meet or exceed viable population levels. Other 
wildlife species would have habitat improved within the constraints of 
other resource objections.
    Recreation would be managed for moderate use levels, with roaded 
natural recreation experiences provided. Off-highway vehicles would be 
limited to designated, signed roads. The area would be identified as a 
Watchable Wildlife site. The Wood River property would be designated an 
Area of Critical Environmental Concern to protect the area's relevant 
and important values (cultural, fish, and wildlife values, and natural 
processes and systems). Neither the Wood River nor Sevenmile Creek were 
found eligible or suitable for designation under the Wild and Scenic 
Rivers Act under any of the alternatives.
A. Barron Bail,
Area Manager, Klamath Falls Resource Area.
[FR Doc. 94-6094 Filed 3-15-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-33-M