[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]
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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.
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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]
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