[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 125 (Friday, June 28, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43680-43682]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-13381]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[ID-076-4610-00]


Proposed Areas of Critical Environmental Concern

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of proposed ACEC designations.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act of 1976, section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental 
Policy Act of 1969, and BLM Planning Regulations (43 CFR part 1600), 
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Upper Snake River District has 
prepared and analyzed draft amendments to the Shoshone Field Office's 
land use plans. The draft amendments propose the designation of 
additional Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs), as well as 
addressing other planning issues for the Shoshone Field Office. These 
amendments would apply to approximately 1.44 million acres of public 
lands managed by the Shoshone Field Office within Elmore, Gooding, 
Camas, Jerome, Blaine, Lincoln, and Minidoka counties in south-central 
Idaho. One proposed amendment action would also amend the Jarbidge 
Resource Management Plan which provides direction for public lands 
managed by the Four Rivers Field Office, BLM; this amendment action 
would only apply to about 1,220 acres of public lands.
    Ten ACECs were nominated for consideration in these land use plans 
amendments. Only seven of the nominated areas met the relevance and 
importance criteria that are required for potential designation. 
Depending on the alternative selected, up to seven additional ACECs may 
be designated through these amendments. Some of these ACECs may have an 
additional designation of ``Research Natural Area'' (RNA) because the 
ACEC values have special importance for educational and/or research 
purposes. Two of the ACECs (Bennett Hills ACEC and King Hill Creek 
ACEC/RNA) would include approximately 1,220 acres of public lands 
managed by the Four Rivers Field Office, Lower Snake River District, 
BLM. Again depending on the alternative selected, the proposed ACEC 
designations would amend two Shoshone Field Office land use plans (the 
Magic Management Framework Plan (MFP) approved in 1975 and the Bennett 
Hills/Timmerman Hills MFP approved in 1976) and the Jarbidge Resource 
Management Plan (RMP) (1987) which provides management direction for 
some of the public lands managed by Four Rivers Field Office.
    The draft amendments and accompanying Environmental Assessment/
FONSI have been published and distributed. Copies are available for 
review and comment (see the ``Dates'' and ``Addresses'' sections 
below). In compliance with 43 CFR 1610.7-2(b), this notice constitutes 
a notice of potential and proposed ACEC designations and commences a 
60-day public comment period. More detailed information about the seven 
proposed ACECs is provided in the ``Supplementary Information'' section 
of this notice.

DATES: The public comment period on the proposed ACEC designations 
begins on August 27, 2002. Written comments on the Shoshone Land Use 
Plans Draft Amendments/EA must be submitted or postmarked no later than 
August 27, 2002. Comments, including the names and street addresses of 
respondents, will be available for public review at the address listed 
below during regular business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.), Monday 
through Friday, except holidays. 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.
    Meetings will be held to receive public comments on the Draft 
Amendments/EA; the dates, times, and locations of these public meetings 
will be announced locally through public mailings and area media.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Shoshone Land Use Plans Draft Amendments/EA 
may be obtained upon request by contacting the Bureau of Land 
Management, Shoshone Field Office, at P.O. Box 2-B, 400 West F Street, 
Shoshone, Idaho 83352, or by phone at (208) 732-7200. Written comments 
on the Draft Amendments/EA should be sent to Bill Baker, Field Manager, 
at the address listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bill Baker, Field Manager, at the 
address listed above or by calling (208) 732-7286. Documents related to 
the Shoshone Land Use Plan Amendments/EA planning process are available 
at the

[[Page 43681]]

above address for public viewing during normal office hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following 10 ACECs were nominated for 
consideration during the amendments planning process: Bennett Hills, 
Big Wood/Warm Springs, Camas Creek, Coyote Hills, Dry Creek, Fir Grove, 
King's Crown, King Hill Creek, McKinney Butte, and Tee-Maze. Three of 
these nominated ACECs (Big Wood/Warm Springs, Fir Grove, King's Crown) 
did not meet required relevance and importance criteria (as per 43 CFR 
1610.7-2). The remaining seven nominated ACECs are proposed for 
designation under one or more of the three action alternatives 
(Alternatives 2, 3, and 4) analyzed in the Shoshone Land Use Plans 
Draft Amendments.
    Alternative 1, the ``no action'' alternative, does not propose any 
additional ACECs for designation. (Note: Five existing ACECs totaling 
18,963 acres (including a 105-acre Natural Area) would continue to be 
designated under existing management and all three ``action'' 
alternatives.) Alternative 2 describes seven additional ACECs for 
designation: Bennett Hills ACEC, Camas Creek ACEC/RNA, Coyote Hills 
ACEC, Dry Creek ACEC/RNA, King Hill Creek ACEC/RNA, McKinney Butte 
ACEC/RNA, and Tee-Maze ACEC/RNA. These ACECs would include 
approximately 384,015 acres managed by the Shoshone Field Office and 
about 1,220 acres managed by the Four Rivers Field Office, for a total 
of approximately 385,235 acres. Alternative 3 (the BLM's preferred 
alternative) and Alternative 4 describe three additional ACECs for 
designation: King Hill Creek ACEC/RNA, McKinney Butte ACEC/RNA, and 
Tee-Maze ACEC/RNA. These designations would apply to about 16,186 acres 
managed by the Shoshone Field Office and approximately 1,220 acres 
managed the Four Rivers Field Office, for a total of approximately 
17,406 acres.
    The paragraphs below summarize additional information about the 
ACEC designations for Alternatives 2, 3, and 4. Each paragraph lists 
(a) the ACEC's name and size, (b) the values which qualified it for 
potential designation, and (c) any resource use limitations which would 
occur within the specified ACEC if it were formally designated.

Proposed ACEC Designations--Alternative 2 Only

    None of the constraints listed under this alternative would reduce 
current use. They would constrain only potential future actions.
    Bennett Hills ACEC (cultural resource values)--Designate 
approximately 381,471 acres as an ACEC, including about 1,220 acres 
managed by the Four Rivers Field Office. Implement the following 
resource use limitations to protect the identified ACEC values: Limit 
mineral material sales and free use permits to existing sites and 
public lands adjacent to State Highway 75, State Highway 46, and the 
Bliss-Hill City Road; limit OHV use to designated and signed roads and 
trails.
    Camas Creek ACEC/RNA (scenic canyon, pristine low elevation 
riparian system)--Designate approximately 420 acres as an ACEC/RNA. 
Implement the following resource use limitations to protect the 
identified ACEC values: Close the ACEC to livestock grazing, except for 
sheep trailing; exclude the ACEC from new land use authorizations; 
stipulate the ACEC no-surface-occupancy for leasable mineral 
exploration and development; close the ACEC to mineral material sales 
and free use permits; limit motorized vehicle use to designated and 
signed roads and trails; designate as VRM Class II (manage visual 
resources to maintain the existing character of the landscape).
    Coyote Hills ACEC (cultural resources)--Designate approximately 
49,062 acres as an ACEC. Implement the following resource use 
limitations to protect the identified ACEC values: Limit mineral 
material sales and free use permits to existing sites and public lands 
adjacent to the Bliss-Hill City Road and State Highway 46; limit OHV 
use to designated and signed roads and trails.
    Dry Creek ACEC/RNA (scenic values, near-pristine riparian system)--
Designate approximately 869 acres, including 3.8 stream miles of stream 
reaches, as an ACEC/RNA. Implement the following resource use 
limitations to protect the identified ACEC values: Close the ACEC to 
livestock grazing, mineral material sales, and free use permits; 
designate the ACEC as closed to OHV use; do not allow any new land use 
authorizations; designate as VRM Class I (manage visual resources to 
maintain a landscape setting that appears unaltered by humans).

Proposed ACEC Designations--Alternatives 3 and 4

    None of the constraints listed under these alternatives would 
reduce current use. They would constrain only potential future actions.
    King Hill Creek ACEC/RNA (scenic canyon; genetically pure Interior 
redband trout (a BLM sensitive species); near-pristine low elevation 
riparian area)--Designate approximately 2,880 acres as an ACEC/RNA, 
including 10 miles of stream reach and 1,220 acres managed by the Four 
Rivers Field Office. Implement the following resource use limitations 
to protect the identified ACEC values: Close the ACEC to livestock 
grazing; close aquatic habitat within the ACEC to introduction of 
genetic strains of trout which are not native to the King Hill Creek 
watershed; exclude the ACEC from new land use authorizations; close the 
ACEC to mineral material sales and free use permits; designate the ACEC 
as ``closed'' to OHV use; designate the ACEC as VRM Class I (manage 
visual resources to maintain a landscape setting that appears unaltered 
by humans).
    McKinney Butte ACEC/RNA (cave scenery and resources; bat 
populations (BLM sensitive species); cave-adapted insect community; 
vertebrate fossils)--Designate approximately 3,764 acres as an ACEC/
RNA. Implement the following resource use limitations to protect the 
identified ACEC values: Prepare an activity plan which identifies 
Limits of Acceptable Change and management actions to protect cave 
resources; restrict access to caves containing bats during winter 
hibernation periods; seasonally prohibit access to caves which provide 
maternity roosts; close the ACEC to mineral material sales and free use 
permits; limit OHV use to designated and signed roads and trails; do 
not allow new land use authorizations; designate 13 caves as 
``significant'' (this administrative determination may result in 
additional resource use limitations as determined on a case-by-case 
basis).
    Tee-Maze ACEC/RNA (cave scenery and resources; bat populations (BLM 
sensitive species); cave-adapted insect community; vertebrate 
fossils)--Designate approximately 10,762 acres as an ACEC/RNA. 
Implement the following resource use limitations to protect the 
identified ACEC values: Prepare an activity plan which identifies 
Limits of Acceptable Change and management actions to protect cave 
resources; restrict access to caves containing bats during winter 
hibernation periods; seasonally prohibit access to caves which provide 
maternity roosts; close the ACEC to mineral material sales and free use 
permits; limit OHV use to designated and signed roads and trails, 
except for allowing cross-country vehicle access within two existing 
mineral use areas; do not allow new land use authorizations; designate 
12 caves as ``significant'' (this administrative determination may 
result in additional resource use limitations as determined on a case-
by-case basis).
    Public participation will continue throughout the remainder of the 
Shoshone Land Use Plans Amendments/EA planning process.

[[Page 43682]]

Following the 60-day public review and comment period for these 
proposed ACEC designations, the BLM will prepare, publish, and 
distribute the Proposed Amendments. The proposed amendments will be 
subject to a 30-day public protest period and a 60-day Governor's 
consistency review prior to issuing the BLM's final decision.

    Dated: March 18, 2002.
James E. May,
District Manager, Upper Snake River District--BLM.
[FR Doc. 02-13381 Filed 6-27-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-GG-P