[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 24, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20152-20153]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-9593]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CA 169-02-1610-DO]


Carrizo Plain National Monument

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management; Bakersfield Field Office.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to (1) prepare a Resource Management Plan 
(RMP) for the Carrizo Plain National Monument, designated January 17, 
2001, and (2) amend the Caliente RMP, approved on May 5, 1997. This 
action will require a single Environmental Assessment (EA). The 
planning area is located in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Kern 
Counties, in California.

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SUMMARY: This document provides notice that the Bureau of Land 
Management (BLM) intends to prepare an RMP and RMP amendment with an 
associated EA for the Bakersfield Field Office. This planning activity 
encompasses approximately 204,000 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 Carrizo Plain National Monument RMP will be created by combining 
the existing Carrizo Plain Natural Area Management Plan with pertinent 
decisions within the Caliente RMP, and amending those decisions as 
needed to bring them into conformance with the monument proclamation. 
Those decisions within the Caliente RMP that pertain only to Carrizo 
will then be removed from the Caliente RMP by amendment. Both the 
Caliente RMP and the Carrizo Plain Natural Area Management Plan were 
prepared by the BLM in collaboration with a broad cross-section of 
interested parties. The BLM will again work collaboratively with 
interested parties to review the management decisions that are best 
suited to local, regional, and national needs and concerns. The 
environmental review process includes an evaluation of the pertinent 
RMP decisions 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: This notice initiates the planning process. General scoping will 
last a minimum of 60 days. The Draft Carrizo RMP and Draft Caliente RMP 
Amendment/EA are expected to be completed in December 2002. A Notice of 
Availability will be published in the Federal Register, beginning a 60 
day public comment period. Public meetings will be held during the 60 
day comment period. A decision on the Carrizo Plain National Monument 
RMP and Caliente RMP Plan Amendment is expected by May 2003.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Carrizo Plain National 
Monument RMP, Bureau of Land Management, Bakersfield Field Office, 3801 
Pegasus Drive, Bakersfield, California 93308; Fax 661 391-6040. 
Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the Bakersfield 
Field Office located in Bakersfield, California. Comments, including 
names and street addresses of respondents, will be available for public 
review at the Bakersfield Field Office during regular business hours 
7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays, and may 
be published as part of the EA. 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 Chris Ryan, Telephone 661 391-
6107.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Carrizo Plain National Monument is 
currently managed under the recently completed Carrizo Plain Natural 
Area Management Plan and the Caliente RMP. Together, these existing 
plans provide a comprehensive management program which is believed to 
be appropriate for the new monument. While BLM will review this 
existing management program in light of current issues associated with 
the new monument, a full scale planning effort is not considered 
necessary. However, BLM will evaluate any public comments as to the 
adequacy of the existing management program prior to making a final 
determination on the scope of the monument plan and related NEPA 
document. (1) The new Carrizo RMP will be comprised of those goals, 
decisions, and allocations within the Caliente RMP that pertain to the 
Carrizo Plain National Monument, combined with the primary goals and 
decisions identified within the Carrizo Plain Natural Area Management 
Plan. Activity plan direction from the Carrizo Plain Natural Area 
Management Plan will be carried forward and appended to the Carrizo 
Plain National Monument RMP. Modification of existing land use planning 
decisions is not anticipated except where necessary to conform to the 
monument proclamation. (2) The Caliente RMP will be amended by removing 
those decisions and allocations that pertain only to public lands 
within the Carrizo Plain National Monument, and clarifying that the 
remaining direction excludes the monument from that point forward. This 
will eliminate any overlap and potential conflict between the two land 
use plans.
    Public Participation: Public meetings will be held during the EA 
public comment period. In order to ensure local community participation 
and input, public meeting locations will be rotated among the towns of 
San Luis

[[Page 20153]]

Obispo, California Valley, and Bakersfield, California. Participation 
is encouraged and will help determine the future management of the 
Carrizo Plain National Monument and the Bakersfield Field Office public 
lands. All public meetings will be announced through the local news 
media, newsletters, and the BLM web site (www.ca.blm.gov) at least 15 
days prior to the event. Any notes generated and the 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. In 
addition to public meetings, formal opportunities for public 
participation will be provided through comment upon publication of the 
draft Carrizo RMP, and Caliente RMP Plan Amendment/EA. In addition, 
written comments will be accepted throughout the entire planning 
process.
    Background Information: On January 17, 2001, the President signed a 
proclamation creating the Carrizo Plain National Monument. The monument 
encompasses approximately 204,000 acres of public lands primarily in 
San Luis Obispo County, with smaller portions within Kern and Santa 
Barbara Counties, all in California. Located midway between the cities 
of Bakersfield and San Luis Obispo, the monument links Bittercreek 
National Wildlife Refuge to the southeast with privately conserved 
lands and the Los Padres National Forest to the northwest. The Caliente 
RMP was completed in 1997 and encompassed all BLM managed public lands 
within San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Kings, Tulare, and 
western Kern counties. Public involvement in preparation of the 
Caliente RMP was solicited through announcements in the Federal 
Register, the mailing of a notice to 1,300 people and organizations, 
six scoping meetings, the mailing of a draft plan to 1,000 interested 
publics, and 6 public open houses. The Carrizo Plain Natural Area 
Management Plan was completed between 1996 and 1999. This plan was 
jointly prepared and signed by The Nature Conservancy, California 
Department of Fish and Game, and BLM, following public involvement that 
included a mailing to 1,000 people and organizations, 7 public 
meetings, and an additional mailing to a list of 200 people and 
organizations before the final plan was compiled. Neither plan has been 
amended previously, and both continue to provide clear and broadly 
supported direction for public lands now within the Carrizo Plain 
National Monument.

Elaine Marquis-Brong,
Director, National Landscape Conservation System, Bureau of Land 
Management.
[FR Doc. 02-9593 Filed 4-24-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-32-P