[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 24, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20148-20149]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-9595]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[AZ 020-01-1610-D0-081A-002A]


Agua Fria National Monument

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Phoenix Field Office, Phoenix, AZ

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare (1) a Resource Management Plan 
(RMP) for Agua Fria National Monument, designated on January 11, 2000, 
and (2) an RMP for lands collectively known as the Bradshaw Foothills. 
These two actions will require a single Environmental Impact Statement 
(EIS).

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    Location: The planning area encompasses the public lands managed by 
the BLM north of Phoenix, Arizona, including the Agua Fria National 
Monument and the Bradshaw Foothills. The Bradshaw Foothills include the 
Black Canyon Corridor and the areas around Lake Pleasant and 
Wickenburg. For more information, a map can be viewed in the Public 
Room of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Phoenix Field Office.
SUMMARY: The BLM provides notice that it intends to prepare two RMPs 
with one associated EIS for lands north of Phoenix, Arizona, managed by 
the Phoenix Field Office. One RMP will be developed for the lands 
referred to as the Bradshaw Foothills, and a separate RMP will be 
developed for the Agua Fria National Monument. This area is currently 
managed under the Lower Gila North Management Framework Plan (MFP) 
(1983) and the Phoenix RMP (1989). These plans will fulfill the needs 
and obligations set forth by the National Environmental Policy Act 
(NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA), the Agua 
Fria National Monument proclamation, and BLM regulations and policies. 
The BLM will work closely with interested parties to identify 
management decisions best suited to the needs of the public. This 
collaborative process will take into account local, regional, and 
national needs and concerns. This notice begins the public scoping 
process to examine proposed issues and planning criteria.

DATES: The scoping comment period will commence with the publication of 
this notice. Formal scoping will last a minimum of 60 days. Comments on 
issues and criteria should be received on or before the end of the 
scoping period at the address listed below. To ensure diverse local 
community participation and input, meeting locations will include the 
following communities: Wickenburg, Phoenix, Peoria, Prescott, Cave 
Creek, New River, Black Canyon City, Cordes Junction and Castle Hot 
Springs. At least 15 days public notice will be given for activities 
where the public is invited to attend. Meetings and comment deadlines 
will be announced through the local news media, newsletters, and the 
BLM web site (www.az.blm.gov). Public meetings will be held throughout 
the plan scoping and preparation period. Early participation by all 
those interested is encouraged and will help determine future 
management of the public lands.

ADDRESSES: To send written comments, obtain further information and/or 
to have your name added to our mailing list, contact: Chris Horyza, 
Bureau of Land Management, Phoenix Field Office, 21605 North 7th 
Avenue,

[[Page 20149]]

Phoenix, AZ 85027; Telephone (623) 580-5628; Fax (623) 580-5580; e-
mail: [email protected]. Documents pertinent to this proposal may 
be examined at the Phoenix Field Office at the address listed above. 
Comments, including names and street addresses of respondents, will be 
available for public review at the Phoenix Field Office 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 and 
businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as 
representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, will be 
available for public inspection in their entirety.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The extraordinary population growth in 
Arizona, and especially the Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area, as well 
as the creation of Agua Fria National Monument, requires 
reconsideration of previous land use plan decisions. This planning 
activity will develop management plans for Agua Fria National Monument 
and the Bradshaw Foothills through one planning effort. These actions 
require a single EIS with two records of decision.
    The BLM will develop these plans using a community-based 
collaborative approach. The BLM will work with local communities to 
develop creative ways to resolve community issues and BLM management 
issues and establish a sense of ownership for BLM activities. BLM will 
work cooperatively with Federal agencies and State, tribal, and local 
governments in developing the plans. The planning area is within the 
planning jurisdiction of the Arizona State Land Department, Yavapai 
County, Maricopa County, Peoria, and Phoenix. Other agencies involved 
in the planning process may include Arizona Department of 
Transportation, Arizona Game and Fish Department, Arizona Public 
Service, and Yavapai and Maricopa County Departments of Transportation 
and Parks and Recreation. In addition, Tonto and Prescott National 
Forests adjoin the planning area and contain similar cultural, 
historic, recreational, and natural resources that should be managed in 
concert with the BLM-managed lands. The collaborative planning approach 
will encourage long-term support for BLM land use plan decisions and 
continued community involvement in BLM projects.
    Preliminary issues and management concerns have been raised by BLM 
employees, other agencies, and through contacts with individuals and 
user groups. BLM will address the following major issues in the plans: 
(1) Meeting public needs and achieving a healthy, thriving environment 
in the face of rapidly increasing urban population; (2) identifying 
actions necessary to provide for visitor use and safety in the Agua 
Fria National Monument; and (3) identifying actions necessary to 
protect the monument's natural and cultural resources consistent with 
the proclamation. These are the issues that have been raised to date.
    After gathering public comments on what issues the plan should 
address, BLM will place the suggested issues into one of four 
categories:
    1. Issues to be resolved in the plan.
    2. Issues to be resolved through policy or administrative action.
    3. Issues to be resolved independent of this planning effort.
    4. Issues beyond the scope of this plan.
    BLM will address category one issues in the land use plan process 
and give a rationale in the plan for each issue placed in category two 
or four. Issues falling under category three will be passed to, and 
addressed by, the appropriate management agency or entity.
    In addition to the preceding major issues, management questions and 
concerns to be addressed in the plans include, but are not limited to, 
the following: ecosystem health, riparian condition, threatened and 
endangered species habitat, wildlife habitat, reintroduction of native 
species, cultural resource protection and interpretation, recreation 
and visitor use, access and transportation, rangeland management, and 
minerals management. The following disciplines will be represented on 
the BLM planning team: wilderness, recreation, wildlife, rangeland 
management, botany, fire ecology, geology, realty, cultural resources, 
soils, hydrology, and geographic information systems (GIS). Where 
necessary, outside expertise may be used.
    Background Information: Agua Fria National Monument was created on 
January 11, 2000, with the signing by the President of Proclamation 
7263. The Monument contains one of the most significant systems of late 
prehistoric sites in the American Southwest. At least 450 prehistoric 
sites are known to exist within the monument. In addition to its rich 
record of human history, the monument contains other objects of 
scientific interest, including a diversity of vegetation communities, a 
wide array of sensitive wildlife species, and native fish populations.
    The purpose of the monument designation is to protect these 
sensitive natural and cultural resources. The proclamation designated 
more than 71,000 acres to be managed by the BLM for this purpose. 
Establishment of the national monument necessitates development of a 
land use plan.
    The area in and around Phoenix, Arizona, has experienced 
significant population growth in recent years. Since 1990, Maricopa 
County's population has increased nearly 35 percent. During this same 
time period, the City of Peoria has annexed more than 59,000 acres, 
including more than 16,000 acres of BLM land, and the City of Phoenix 
has added more than 19,000 acres, including nearly 700 acres of BLM 
land. These are only two of the growing cities and towns expanding 
their borders toward and into the Bradshaw Foothills Planning Area. The 
increased pressure on public lands for recreation, rights-of-way, 
mineral materials, and other purposes resulting from population 
increases requires BLM to readdress its land use plan decisions.

Elaine Marquis-Brong,
Director, National Landscape Conservation System, Bureau of Land 
Management.
[FR Doc. 02-9595 Filed 4-23-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-32-P