[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 27 (Thursday, February 9, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Page 7784]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-3274]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
[ID-056-1610-00]


Notice of Intent to Prepare a Supplement to the Draft 
Environmental Impact Statement for the Bennett Hills Draft Resource 
Management Plan and Amendment to the Jarbridge Resource Management 
Plan, Idaho

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management; Interior.

ACTION: The Shoshone District Bureau of Land Management announces the 
intent to prepare a supplement to the Bennett Hills Draft Resource 
Management Plan/Draft Environmental Impact Statement, and Amendment to 
the Jarbridge Resource Management Plan.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to 40 CFR 1502.9(c) implementing the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Bureau of Land Management's Idaho 
State Director has determined the need to prepare a supplement to the 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Bennett Hills Draft 
Resource Management Plan issued for public comment on April 1, 1994. 
This action is taken to allow the agency to fully consider and 
incorporate comments received on the draft.

DATES: No date has been set for the release of the Supplement. 
Notification of release will be made in the Federal Register and local 
news media. The Supplement will be circulated for an additional 90-day 
public comment period.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project Manager William H. West, 
Shoshone District Bureau of Land Management, P.O. 2-B, Shoshone, Idaho 
83352, telephone (208) 886-7203.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On September 20, 1990, the Shoshone District 
Bureau of Land Management published a Notice of Intent to prepare a 
Draft Resource Management Plan/Draft Environmental Impact Statement for 
the Bennett Hills Resource Area. On March 25, 1992, the Boise District 
of the Bureau of Land Management published a Notice of Intent to 
prepare an Amendment to the Jarbridge Resource Management Plan to be 
incorporated in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the 
Bennett Hills Draft Resource Management Plan. On April 1, 1994, a 
Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement was 
published in the Federal Register and the public was invited to 
comment.
    The public comment period ended on July 1, 1994, with 170 comment 
letters received containing over 400 individual comments. The comments 
identified new actions, standards and guidelines not contained in the 
Draft. The comments include specific suggestions for livestock 
management prescriptions in riparian areas, proposals for new Areas of 
Critical Environmental Concern, and land exchanges to accommodate 
recent community expansion needs that were not contained or analyzed in 
the Draft.
    The comments also provided clarity and focus to the public's 
desires and needs not found in the original scoping for the Draft in 
1990. At the time of the original scoping, five open houses were held 
at different locations in the valley; however, less than 30 people 
attended and, despite concerted efforts to solicit public opinion, only 
66 total comments were received during the formal scoping period. The 
scoping comments were very broad in nature and often dealt with general 
BLM policy questions not directed toward actions within the 
jurisdiction of the RMP. Comments received on the Draft were directed 
toward management actions on the planning area and within the scope of 
a Resource Management Plan decision. Additionally, because of the long 
lag time from the scoping to the publication of the Draft, the public's 
wishes for management of the public land had changed.

    Dated: January 31, 1995.
Robert D. Cordell,
Area Manager, Bennett Hills Resource Area.
[FR Doc. 95-3274 Filed 2-8-95; 8:45 am]
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