[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 251 (Thursday, December 31, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72323-72324]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-34711]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management
[OR-050-1220-00; GP9-0053]


Notice of Planning Update for the John Day River Management Plan 
and Potential Related Amendments to the Two Rivers and John Day 
Resource Management Plans

AGENCY: Prineville District, Central Oregon Resource Area.

ACTION: Notice of Present Status regarding development of a Revised 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Management Plan for the Wild 
and Scenic John Day River and related Resource Management Plans.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the State of Oregon, 
Prineville District, Central Oregon Resource Area, is revising the 
Draft Environmental Impact Statement and Management Plan for the Wild 
and Scenic John Day River Plan which will further amend sections of the 
Two Rivers and John Day Resource Management Plan. Reference may be made 
to the original Notice of Intent, Federal Register, Vol. 56, No. 234, 
December 5, 1991, page 63742.
    The original Plan completion schedule is revised as a result of a 
litigated settlement concerning a suit against the BLM.

DATES: The previously announced public scoping period was concluded on 
October 30, 1997. The revised draft river management plan and 
environmental impact statement (EIS) was previously scheduled for a 90 
day public review period in the early summer of 1998; however, this 
date has been changed to April of 1999. The proposed river plan, 
related RMP amendments, and final EIS are now expected to be available 
for public review during November of 1999. Any additional opportunities 
for public review and comment will be announced through the Federal 
Register, direct mailings to known interested parties, and 
announcements in Prineville's newspaper, the Central Oregonian, John 
Day's newspaper, the Blue Mountain Eagle, and Condon's newspaper, the 
Condon Times.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR RELATED DOCUMENTS CONTACT: Dan Wood, Project 
Manager, Prineville District BLM, PO Box 550, Prineville, Oregon 97754 
(Telephone 541-416-6751, FAX 541-416-6798). Anyone interested in 
participating during the public review process of this planning effort 
may request to be added to the mailing list. Individuals should specify 
if they wish to have their names and addresses withheld from public 
access under the privacy provisions of the Freedom of Information Act. 
Copies of the two existing approved plans (as amended) are available, 
upon request at this location.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Bureau of Land Management is developing 
a Revised Draft Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS) for public lands along the John Day River system in Oregon. The 
John Day River watershed encompasses all or portions of eleven 
counties, six of which would be directly affected by the proposed plan. 
The development of the Plan is accomplished through a partnership 
consisting of the BLM, the State of Oregon, The Confederated Tribes of 
the Warm Springs and the John Day River Coalition of Counties which 
consist of Gilliam, Grant, Jefferson, Sherman, Wasco and Wheeler 
Counties. Progress of the Plan is reviewed monthly by a Resource 
Advisory Council (RAC) Sub-Group, created expressly for this purpose, 
which comments back to the BLM and Partners developing the Plan.
    The planning and analysis process will comply with the procedural 
requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act, the Wild and 
Scenic River Act (as amended) and the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act. The resulting decisions are expected to satisfy the 
requirements of the 1989 Omnibus Oregon Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, 
amend relevant portions of the Two Rivers and John Day Resource 
Management Plans (both within and outside the river corridors) and 
address relevant issues from ongoing litigation concerning the John Day 
River Plan. The federally designated Wild and Scenic segments of the 
John Day River managed by the Bureau include 147 miles of the John Day 
River mainstem from Service Creek to Tumwater Falls and 47 miles of the 
South Fork of the John Day River from the Malheur National Forest 
boundary to Smokey Creek. The 54 mile federally designated Wild and 
Scenic segment of the North Fork of the John Day River is managed by 
the Umatilla National Forest under a previously prepared and approved 
plan.
    The revised draft plan and EIS will analyze public lands managed by 
the Bureau along the John Day River segments which are federally 
designated as Wild and Scenic and segments which are not so designated, 
some of which may be potentially suitable for designation as additional 
components of the National Wild and Scenic River System. Special 
emphasis will be given to management strategies that protect and 
enhance the outstandingly remarkable values for which the Bureau 
managed segments were designated. These outstandingly remarkable values 
are scenic, recreational, geologic, fish, wildlife, historic and 
cultural. Other values identified as significant are botanical, 
ecological, paleontological,, and archeological resources. Planning and 
analysis issues will include management, protection and enhancement of 
the identified river related values, plus any related Bureau authorized 
activities or resource uses such as, but not limited to, livestock 
grazing, irrigated agriculture, road and facility construction and 
maintenance, noxious weed control, streambank stability and 
stabilization, acquisition and management of additional lands within 
the river corridor and attainment of State of Oregon approved water 
quality standards.
    Preliminary future management strategies (alternatives0 to be 
addressed are (1) Baseline/ Current Use, Development and Management (No 
Action), (2) Maximum Enhancement of Natural Values With Minimal 
Development, (3) Required Protection and System Restoration and 
Moderate Use and Development, (4) Increased Use and Development to 
Enhance Local Economic Activity and Developed recreation Consistent 
with River Resource Protection and (5) A Preferred Alternative (to be 
developed from elements of the other alternatives with public input). 
Any decisions which are inconsistent with the current Two Rivers or 
John Day RMPs would result in amendments to the applicable plans as a 
result of the Oregon State Director approval of the Record of Decision. 
A team of interdisciplinary specialists, whose backgrounds are in the 
resources to be affected, will be involved in the review and 
development of the description of the affected environment, development 
of alternatives and impact analysis. Disciplines to be represented on 
the team preparing the plan amendment and EIS include, but are not 
limited to: archeology, anthropology, economics, lands and minerals, 
recreation, forestry, fisheries, hydrology, botanical, soils wildlife, 
geology and hazardous materials.
    The Prineville District's Two Rivers (1986) and John Day (1985, 
1995) Resource Management Plans (RMPs) currently provide general 
management for the river corridors and known river related values as 
well as overall land resource use allocations and resource protection 
or enhancement. Although it is anticipated that the final decisions for

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river management considered through this analysis could be in full 
conformance with the applicable RMPs, it is possible that portions of 
some actions under some alternatives may not be in full conformance 
with the approved RMPs, as required by 43 Code of Federal Regulations 
(CFR), Sub-part 1610.5-3, ``Conformity and Implementation''. The 
environmental analysis and public and interagency review process 
anticipated for this analysis are expected to fully comply with the 
Bureaus regulations for land use planning, including land use plan 
amendments, public involvement and coordination with other Federal 
agencies, State and local governments and Indian tribes, (43 CFR 
1610.2, 1610.3 and 1610.5-5). This will allow the analysis to consider 
river corridor and value strategies which are inconsistent with the 
current direction or substantially affect other resource uses and 
allocations in one or more of the subject approved RMPs. Any approved 
decisions which amend the applicable plans will be incorporated into 
the plans and become part of the permanent planning record. Any 
refinements or clarifications of management direction, priority of 
river resource allocations and use of final river corridor boundaries 
will be incorporated into the applicable plans and documented through 
published plan maintenance reports, as provided under 43 CFR 1610.5-4. 
Copies of the two existing approved plans (as amended) will be 
available in the same locations as the other elements of the supporting 
record, as noted elsewhere in this notice.
    The decisions made through this analysis are expected to be 
implemented in a series of actions over a period of several years. 
Although the intent is to implement the final river plan within 
approximately two years of the approval of the decision(s), some 
residual actions or independent resource use actions which are in 
conformance with the analysis and decisions and associated approved 
RMPs may occur over a period of ten or more years. In effect, this 
analysis will serve both to facilitate the immediate need for a 
comprehensive river plan and some immediate changes in resource use or 
resource allocations or vegetation remediation or recreational facility 
projects and it will also provide for future long-term actions that 
fall under the programmatic nature of this analysis dealing with 
``desired future conditions''. Future site developments, land use 
allocation changes and projects would be subject to appropriate 
environmental analyses, public and interagency reviews and will be 
reported in the applicable District periodic planning update reports 
which are distributed to known interested parties.

    Dated: December 18, 1998.
James L. Hancock,
District Manager.
[FR Doc. 98-34711 Filed 12-30-98; 8:45 am]
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