[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 24, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20158-20159]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-9589]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[MT 060-02-1610-DO]


Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare a Resource Management Plan (RMP) 
for the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument, designated 
January 17, 2001. This action will require a single Environmental 
Impact Statement (EIS). The planning area is located in Chouteau, 
Blaine, Phillips and Fergus

[[Page 20159]]

Counties. The Monument RMP will be a new management plan and amend a 
portion of two plans affected by the designation; (1) the West HiLine 
RMP and (2) Judith-Valley-Phillips RMP.

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SUMMARY: This document provides notice that the Bureau of Land 
Management (BLM) intends to prepare an RMP with an associated EIS for 
the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument. This planning 
activity encompasses approximately 375,000 acres of public land. The 
plan will fulfill the needs and obligations set forth by the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management 
Act (FLPMA), the monument proclamation, and BLM management policies. 
The BLM will work collaboratively with interested parties to identify 
the management decisions that are best suited to local, regional, and 
national needs and concerns. The public scoping process will identify 
planning issues and develop planning criteria, including an evaluation 
of the West HiLine and Judith-Valley-Phillips RMPs in the context of 
the needs and interests of the public and protection of the objects of 
historic and scientific interest specified in the proclamation.

DATES: The publication of this notice will initiate the public scoping 
comment process which will end after 120 days.Comments on issues and 
planning criteria can be submitted in writing to the address listed 
below. All public meetings will be announced through the local news 
media, newsletter, and the BLM web site (www.mt.blm.gov) at least 15 
days prior to the event. The minutes and list of attendees for each 
meeting will be available to the public and open for 30 days to any 
participant who wishes to clarify the views they expressed.
    Public Participation: Public meetings will be held during the plan 
scoping and preparation period. In order to ensure local community 
participation and input, public meeting locations will be in Winifred, 
Lewistown, Great Falls, Fort Benton, Havre, Chinook, and Malta, 
Montana. Early participation is encouraged and will help determine the 
future management of the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument 
public lands. In addition to the ongoing public participation process, 
formal opportunities for public participation will be provided through 
comment on the alternatives and upon publication of the BLM draft RMP/
EIS. In addition, written comments will be accepted throughout the 
entire planning process.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Gary Slagel, Monument 
Manager, Bureau of Land Management, Lewistown Field Office, P.O. Box 
1160, Lewistown, MT 59457-1160. Documents pertinent to this proposal 
may be examined at the Lewistown Field Office located in Lewistown, 
Montana. Comments, including names and street addresses of respondents, 
will be available for public review at the Lewistown Field Office 
located in Lewistown, Montana, during regular business hours 7:45 a.m. 
to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays, and may be 
published as part of the EIS. Individual respondents may request 
confidentiality. If you wish to withhold your name or street address 
from public review or from disclosure under the Freedom of Information 
Act, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your written 
comment. Such requests will be honored to the extent allowed by law. 
All submissions from organizations and businesses, and from individuals 
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations 
or businesses, will be available for public inspection in their 
entirety.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: For further information and/or to have your 
name added to our mailing list, contact Jerry Majerus, Project Manager, 
406-538-1924.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The creation of the Upper Missouri River 
Breaks National Monument, along with the changing needs and interests 
of the public, necessitates creation of an RMP for the Monument and an 
amendment to the West HiLine and Judith-Valley-Phillips RMPs to address 
some decisions affected by the Monument designation. These actions 
require a single EIS and one Record of Decision (ROD).
    Preliminary issues and management concerns have been identified by 
BLM personnel, other agencies, and in meetings with individuals and 
user groups. They represent the BLM's knowledge to date on the existing 
issues and concerns with current management. The major issue themes 
that will be addressed in the plan effort include, but are not limited 
to: Management and protection of public land resources; recreation/
visitor use, interpretation and safety; integrating monument management 
with community, tribal, and other agency needs; and access and 
transportation on the public lands.
    After gathering public comments on what issues the plan should 
address, the suggested issues will be placed in one of three 
categories:
    1. Issues to be resolved in the plan;
    2. Issues resolved through policy or administrative action; or
    3. Issues beyond the scope of this plan.
    Rationale will be provided in the plan for each issue placed in 
category two or three. In addition to these major issues, a number of 
management questions and concerns will be addressed in the plan. The 
public is encouraged to help identify these questions and concerns 
during the scoping phase.
    An interdisciplinary approach will be used to develop the plan in 
order to consider the variety of resource issues and concerns 
identified. Disciplines involved in the planning process will include 
specialists with expertise in rangeland management, minerals and 
geology, forestry, outdoor recreation, archaeology, paleontology, 
wildlife and fisheries, lands and realty, hydrology, soils, sociology 
and economics. Where necessary and available, outside expertise may be 
sought to help advise BLM.
    Background Information: On January 17, 2001, the President signed a 
Proclamation creating the Upper Missouri River Breaks National 
Monument. The monument encompasses approximately 375,000 acres of 
public land located in north-central Montana in Chouteau, Blaine, 
Phillips and Fergus Counties, Montana. The area generally corresponds 
with the Upper Missouri National Wild and Scenic River from Fort Benton 
downstream to approximately Arrow Creek where it begins to widen out 
from five to sixteen miles on either side of the Missouri River to the 
Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge.
    A portion of the West HiLine RMP was approved in 1988 and the 
remainder in 1992 and the Judith-Valley-Phillips RMP was completed in 
1994. Several multi-discipline plans have recently been completed, 
including the Two Calf Watershed Plan (1998), Woodhawk Watershed Plan 
(1998), and Armells Watershed Plan (2000). The Upper Missouri National 
Wild and Scenic River Management Plan Update was completed in 1993 and 
the Missouri River Facility Maintenance/Replacement EA was completed in 
1997. Information from these existing plans may be incorporated into 
the Monument RMP.

Elaine Marquis-Brong,
Director, National Landscape Conservation System, Bureau of Land 
Management.
[FR Doc. 02-9589 Filed 4-23-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-32-P