[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 24, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20157-20158]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-9594]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[AZ 069-01-1610-DO-241E]


Ironwood Forest National Monument

AGENCY: Tucson Field Office, Bureau of Land Management, Tucson, 
Arizona.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to (1) prepare a Resource Management Plan 
(RMP) for the Ironwood Forest National Monument, designated on June 9, 
2000, and (2) amend the 1989 Phoenix RMP to consider land tenure 
adjustments in support of the Pima County Sonoran Desert Conservation 
Plan. These two actions will require a single Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS). These lands are located northwest of Tucson in Pima 
and Pinal Counties, Arizona.

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SUMMARY: This document provides notice that the Bureau of Land 
Management (BLM) intends to prepare a RMP for the Ironwood Forest 
National Monument and an amendment to the Phoenix RMP to consider land 
tenure adjustments with one EIS prepared for both plans. The plan 
development will continue and expand the planning approach in the 
Tucson Field Office, which means working closely with interested 
parties to identify the management decisions that are best suited to 
the needs of the public. This collaborative process will take into 
account local, regional, and national needs and concerns. The planning 
effort will include the Ironwood Forest National Monument and other 
lands managed by the Tucson Field Office. The planning effort will 
fulfill the needs and obligations set forth by the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management 
Act (FLPMA), the National Monument proclamation, and BLM management 
policies. This notice also initiates the public scoping process to 
examine issues and develop planning criteria to guide the planning 
process. Formal scoping will last a minimum of 60 days. The scoping 
process will include an evaluation of the existing RMP in the context 
of the needs and interests of the public and protection of the objects 
of scientific and historic interest in the National Monument.

ADDRESSES: For further information and/or to have your name added to 
our mailing list, contact Tony Herrell, Telephone 520-258-7203, Bureau 
of Land Management, Tucson Field Office, 12661 East Broadway, Tucson, 
Arizona 85748; Fax 520-258-7238. Comments, including names and street 
addresses of respondents, will be available for public review at the 
above address during regular business hours 7:45 a.m. to 4:15 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 or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or 
businesses, will be made available for public inspection in their 
entirety.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The designation of the Ironwood Forest 
National Monument and the changing needs and interests of the public 
necessitate the development of a RMP for the Ironwood Forest National 
Monument. In addition, the Phoenix RMP will be amended to address land 
tenure adjustments in support of the Pima County Sonoran Desert 
Conservation Plan. These two actions require a single EIS. Public 
meetings will be held throughout the scoping and preparation period. In 
order to ensure local community participation and input, meeting 
locations will occur in local communities in the Tucson area, including 
Marana, Eloy, Casa Grande, and Picture Rocks, as well as in the Phoenix 
area. At least 15 days public notice will be given for activities where 
the public is invited to attend. The minutes and list of attendees for 
each meeting will be available to the public and open for 30 days to 
any participants who wish to clarify the views they expressed. Written 
comments will also be accepted throughout the planning process at the 
address shown above. Meetings and comment deadlines will be announced 
through the local news media, newsletters and the BLM web site 
(www.az.blm.gov). Additional opportunities for public participation 
will be provided through comment on the alternatives and upon 
publishing the draft RMP/Draft EIS. Documents pertinent to this 
proposal may be examined at the Tucson Field Office located in Tucson, 
Arizona. Early participation by all those interested is encouraged and 
will help determine the future management of the Ironwood Forest 
National Monument.
    Preliminary issues and management concerns have been identified by 
BLM personnel and other agencies and in meetings with individuals and 
user groups. They represent 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 are: Management and 
protection of Monument resources; appropriate scientific research 
activities; visitor use and safety; identification of protection 
measures for cultural resources, sensitive plant and animal species and 
other special resources; public access and transportation within the 
Monument; commercial and industrial uses; integrating Monument 
management with tribal, other agency and community needs; and 
addressing urban interface and land tenure issues. Other issues may be 
identified by interested parties during the public scoping phase of the 
planning. 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.
    3. Issues beyond the scope of this plan.
    Rationale will be provided for each issue placed in category 2 or 
3. In addition to the preceding major issues, management questions and 
concerns to be addressed in the plan effort include, but are not 
limited to: Native American consultation; rangeland management; 
watershed management; wildlife management; soil, water, and vegetation 
management; air quality; and hazardous materials. Disciplines 
corresponding to these issue areas will be represented and used during 
the planning process. Where necessary, outside expertise may be used.
    Background Information: The Ironwood Forest National Monument was 
created to protect the resources of the Sonoran Desert. The Ironwood 
Forest National Monument Presidential Proclamation of June 9, 2000, 
designated about 129,068 acres of land in Pima and Pinal Counties, 
Arizona, managed by the BLM as the Ironwood Forest National Monument.
    Before designation, management of the area was guided by the 
Phoenix RMP, completed in 1989. Previously

[[Page 20158]]

completed wildlife habitat plans, such as the Silverbell Habitat 
Management Plan, allotment management plans, as well as other activity 
level plans provide specific management direction and actions on lands 
within and immediately adjacent to the Ironwood Forest National 
Monument. As these plans address many significant issues, those 
decisions that are still valid will be incorporated into the new plan. 
Pima County, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and 
with the unanimous endorsement of the Board of Supervisors, spearheaded 
the planning effort that addressed growth issues in the county, largely 
related to construction delays because of the identification of 
threatened and endangered species. This local, collaborative effort 
involved all interested parties in developing the Sonoran Desert 
Conservation Plan. This collaborative approach will continue to be used 
in the planning for the Ironwood Forest National Monument. Among the 
management prescriptions included in the Sonoran Desert Conservation 
Plan are the identification of lands critical to threatened and 
endangered species throughout Pima County, including the recommendation 
to designate the Ironwood Forest National Monument.

Elaine Marquis-Brong,
Director, National Landscape Conservation System, Bureau of Land 
Management.
[FR Doc. 02-9594 Filed 4-23-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-32-P