[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 164 (Friday, August 23, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54669-54670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-21248]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CA-610-01-1610-DQ]


Notice of Availability of the Northern and Eastern Mojave Desert 
Proposed Plan, an Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area 
Plan, and Final Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior, 
California Desert District, Riverside, California.

ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Proposed Plan and associated 
Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Northern and 
Eastern Mojave Desert planning area (NEMO), an amendment to the Bureau 
of Land Management California Desert Conservation Area Plan.

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SUMMARY: NEMO amends the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) 
Plan for a 3.3 million acre area in the northeastern portion of the 
CDCA, and provides for conservation and recovery of T & E species, 
reduces the need for further species listings and streamlines the 
processing of land-use permits. NEMO includes goals, objectives, 
management prescriptions and monitoring in accordance with the Federal 
Lands Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) for comprehensive, 
strategic, management of the desert landscapes, including a 
programmatic biological opinion for the desert tortoise, strategies for 
the Amargosa watershed which include multiple listed species and 
sensitive bat habitat. The FEIS evaluates the Proposed Plan Amendments 
and alternatives, includes public comments on the Draft EIS and 
provides responses to those comments.

DATES: Written protests on the Final EIS will be accepted if received 
within 30 calendar days from the date that a Notice of Availability is 
published in the Federal Register by the Environmental Protection 
Agency. Instructions for filing protests are contained in the NEMO 
document Cover Sheet, just inside the front cover, and are included 
below the Supplemental Information.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the NEMO Proposed Plan/FEIS are being mailed to 
those who received the Draft EIS or provided comments on the Draft EIS. 
The document is available for review online at http://www.ca.blm.gov/cdd/nemo.html. Reading copies are also available at most local 
libraries and the following BLM offices:

BLM, 6221 Box Springs Blvd., Riverside, CA 92507; (909) 697-5200
BLM, 2601 Barstow Road, Barstow, CA 92311; (760) 252-6000
BLM, 101 West Spikes Road, Needles, CA 92363; (760) 326-7000
BLM, 300 South Richmond Road, Ridgecrest, CA 93555; (760) 384-5400
BLM, 690 Garnet, North Palm Springs, CA 92258; (760) 251-4800
BLM, 1661 South 4th Street, El Centro, CA 92243; (760) 337-4400

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Edythe Seehafer, Barstow Field Office, 
2601 Barstow Road, Barstow, California 92311; Telephone (760) 252-6021.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Development of the plan began in 1994, with 
scoping meetings held in conjunction with the National Park Service 
(NPS). NPS is conducting concurrent planning efforts on adjacent lands. 
The NEMO Planning Area covers 3.3 million acres of land in the 
southeastern California Desert of which 2.7 million acres are public 
lands. This document describes and analyzes a number of alternatives 
for managing species and habitats on public lands administered by the 
BLM. Issues identified during public scoping included (1) recovery of 
threatened and endangered species, including the desert tortoise, the 
Amargosa vole, the Amargosa niterwort, the Ash Meadows Gumplant and 
spring-loving Centaury; (2) maintenance of public access through the 
NEMO planning area which includes sensitive areas, is surrounded by two 
national park units and two large military bases, and includes all or 
parts of twenty-four wilderness and eight wilderness study areas; (3) 
addressing impacts to other land uses; and (4) protection of County tax 
base.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Environmental Protection Agency 
published the Notice of Availability of the NEMO DEIS in the Federal 
Register on April 13, 2001. The public review period on the DEIS began 
April 13, 2001 and ended November 1, 2001.
    Following are the instructions from the Code of Federal Regulations 
1610.5-2 for filing protests. (a) Any person who participates in the 
planning process and has an interest which is or may be adversely 
affected by the approval or amendment of a resource management plan may 
protest such approval or amendment. A protest may raise only those 
issues which were submitted for the record during the planning process.
    (1) The protest shall be in writing and shall be filed with the 
Director. The protest shall be filed within 30 days of the date the 
Environmental Protection Agency published the notice of receipt of the 
final environmental impact statement containing the plan or amendment 
in the Federal Register. For

[[Page 54670]]

an amendment not requiring the preparation of an environmental impact 
statement, the protest shall be filed within 30 days of the publication 
of the notice of its effective date.
    (2) The protest shall contain:
    (i) The name, mailing address, telephone number and interest of the 
person filing the protest;
    (ii) A statement of the issue or issues being protested;
    (iii) A statement of the part or parts of the plan or amendment 
being protested;
    (iv) A copy of all documents addressing the issue or issues that 
were submitted during the planning process by the protesting party or 
an indication of the date the issue or issues were discussed for the 
record; and
    (v) A concise statement explaining why the State Director's 
decision is believed to be wrong.
    (3) The Director shall promptly render a decision on the protest. 
The decision shall be in writing and shall set forth the reasons for 
the decision. The decision shall be sent to the protesting party by 
certified mail, return receipt requested.
    (b) The decision of the Director shall be the final decision for 
the Department of the Interior.
    Mailing address for filing a protest:

Regular mail: U.S. Department of the Interior, Director, Bureau of Land 
Management, Protest Coordinator (WO-210), 1849 ``C'' Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20240
Overnight mail: U.S. Department of the Interior, Director, Bureau of 
Land Mgt, Protest Coordinator (WO-210), 1620 ``L'' Street, NW., Rm 
1075, Washington, DC 20036

Bruce Shaffer,
Acting District Manager.
[FR Doc. 02-21248 Filed 8-22-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-M