[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 145 (Thursday, July 29, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41129-41130]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-19332]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management
[UT-030-99-1610-00]


Proposed Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement; 
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with Section 102 of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA), and 43 CFR part 1610, the Proposed 
Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) has 
been prepared for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM), 
Utah. This notice announces the availability of the Proposed Management 
Plan, which may be protested for a 30 day period to the Director of the 
Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The Proposed Management Plan provides 
decisions for management of approximately 1,870,765 acres of public 
lands in Kane and Garfield Counties in south-central Utah. The Proposed 
Management Plan: (a) Draws upon elements of each of the five 
alternatives analyzed in the Draft Management Plan/Draft EIS to 
formulate the Proposed Management Plan, (b) reflects consideration 
given to public comments on, and corrections to, the Draft Management 
Plan/Draft EIS, as well as rewording for clarification, and (c) 
incorporates a refined environmental impact analysis section. The FEIS 
is also being made available for 30 days prior to making any decision 
in accordance with 40 CFR 1506.10(a)(2).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Killingsworth, Planning 
Coordinator, Bureau of Land Management, Grand Staircase-Escalante 
National Monument, 335 South Main Street, Suite 010, Cedar City, Utah 
84720, telephone 435-865-5100.

ADDRESSES: Protests must be addressed to the Director (WO-210), Bureau 
of Land Management, Attn: Ms. Brenda Williams, Protests Coordinator, 
1849 C Street, NW., Department of the Interior, Washington, DC 20240, 
within 30 days after the date of publication of the notice for the 
Proposed Management Plan.

DATES: The Proposed Management Plan may be protested. The protest 
period will commence with the date of publication of a Notice of Filing 
by the Environmental Protection Agency, which is expected to be on July 
30, 1999. Protests must be submitted in writing and must be postmarked 
on or before August 30, 1999.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Proposed Management Plan presents 
objectives and decisions for managing public lands for the following 
resource categories or uses: Geology; Paleontology; Archaeology; 
History; Soils and Biological Soil Crusts; Vegetation and Vegetation 
Management; Riparian; Special Status Plant Species; Fish and Wildlife; 
Special Status Animal Species; Water; Air Quality; Recreational 
Facilities, Activities, and Uses; Rights-of-Way; Commercial Uses 
(Filming, Outfitter and Guides, Vending); Forestry Products; Valid 
Existing Rights; Livestock Grazing; Water Related Developments; 
Wildfire Management; Wildlife Services; Visual Resource Management; and 
Wild and Scenic Rivers. The BLM has concluded that 223 miles of river 
segments would be recommended as suitable for Congressional designation 
under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This Proposed Management Plan 
promotes opportunities for community based partnerships and 
collaborative processes for successful and effective management of 
public lands into the future.
    The Draft Management Plan/Draft EIS was released for public review 
and comment in November of 1998 and was followed by a four month 
comment period. The draft management plan/draft EIS analyzed five 
alternative management strategies for public lands in GSENM, Utah.
    The Monument Planning Office received over 6,500 comment letters on 
the draft management plan/draft EIS from local, State and Federal 
governments, interest groups, and the public at large. Since the 
release of the draft management plan/draft EIS, public meetings, 
workshops, mailings, and briefings have been conducted to solicit 
comments, new information, and ideas for the Proposed Management Plan.
    The Proposed Management Plan responds to public comments received 
on the draft management plan/draft EIS. The Proposed Management Plan 
also corrects errors in the draft management plan/draft EIS identified 
through the public comment process and internal BLM review. The 
Proposed Management Plan and associated analysis presents a refined and 
modified version of the Preferred Alternative and the accompanying 
impact analysis contained in the draft management plan/draft EIS. The 
Proposed Management Plan can be used in conjunction with the draft 
management plan/draft EIS to facilitate review of the initial five 
alternatives. The description of the affected environment and detailed 
descriptions of the alternatives contained in the draft management 
plan/draft EIS, as well as some of the appendices, are referenced but 
not reproduced in the Proposed Management Plan.
    Copies of the Proposed Management Plan are available from GSENM 
Planning Office, 335 South Main Street, Suite 010, Cedar City, Utah, 
84720, 435-865-5100. Public reading copies will be available for review 
at all government-document depository libraries, and at the following 
BLM locations: Office of Public Affairs, Main Interior Building, 18th 
and C Streets N.W., Washington, DC 20240; Information Access Center 
(4th Floor), Utah BLM State Office, 324 S. State Street, Salt Lake 
City, Utah, 84111; Cedar City District Office, 176 East DL Sargent 
Drive, Cedar City, Utah 84720; Kanab Field Office, 318 North First 
East, Kanab, Utah 84741; and GSENM Field Office, Escalante, Utah

[[Page 41130]]

84726. Background information and reference materials used in 
developing the Proposed Management Plan are available for review, upon 
request, in Cedar City at the GSENM Planning Office.
    Written protests on the Proposed Management Plan will be accepted 
for 30 days following the date the Environmental Protection Agency 
published the Notice of Filing of this document in the Federal 
Register. It is anticipated that the filing date will be on July 30, 
1999, thus ending the public review/protest period on August 30, 1999, 
and the Governor's 60-day consistency review on September 28, 1999. Any 
part of this Proposed Management Plan may be protested by parties who 
participated in the planning process. Protests must pertain to issues 
that were identified in the draft management plan/draft EIS or through 
the public comment process.
    Protests must be addressed to the BLM Director at the address 
listed under ADDRESSES. The protest must be specific and contain the 
following information (43 CFR 1610.5-2):

--The name, mailing address, telephone number and interest of the 
person filing the protest;
--A statement of the issue(s) being protested;
--A statement of the part(s) of the proposed amendment being protested, 
and a citing of pages, paragraphs, maps, etc., of the Proposed 
Management Plan, where practical.;
--A copy of all documents addressing the issue(s) that were submitted 
by the protestor during the planning process or an indication of the 
date the issue or issues were discussed for the record; and
--A concise statement explaining why the proposed decision is believed 
to be in error.

    At the end of the 30-day protest period, the 30-day NEPA 
administrative period, and the 60-day Governor's review period a Record 
of Decision will be issued approving the Plan. Approval will be 
withheld on any portion of the plan under protest until final action 
has been completed on such protest.

    Dated: July 23, 1999.
Willie R. Taylor,
Director, Office of Environmental Policy and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 99-19332 Filed 7-28-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-DQ-P