[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 198 (Friday, October 11, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63448-63449]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-25924]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management


Notice of Intent To Prepare a Resource Management Plan (RMP) for 
the King Range National Conservation Area

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management; Arcata Field Office.

ACTION: Notice of Intent to Prepare a Resource Management Plan (RMP) 
for the King Range National Conservation Area and associated 
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

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SUMMARY: This document provides notice that the Bureau of Land 
Management (BLM) intends to prepare an RMP with an associated EIS for 
the King Range National Conservation Area (KRNCA), managed by the 
Arcata Field Office. The planning area is located in Humboldt and 
Mendocino Counties, California. This planning activity encompasses 
approximately 63,000 acres of land within the National Conservation 
Area (NCA) boundary. The plan will fulfill the obligations set forth by 
the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy 
and Management Act (FLPMA), the King Range Act, and BLM management 
policies. The plan will serve to update the 1974 King Range Management 
Program (KRMP) and associated amendments. Decisions in the original 
plan and amendments that are still current will be carried forward in 
the new plan. The BLM will work collaboratively with interested parties 
to identify the management decisions that are best suited to local, 
regional, and national needs and concerns. The public scoping process 
will identify planning issues, develop planning criteria, and outline a 
vision for area management that reflects the needs and interests of the 
public and protection of the areas resource values as called for by the 
King Range Act.

DATES: This notice initiates the public scoping process. Comments on 
issues and planning criteria can be submitted in writing to the address 
listed below. All public meetings will be announced through the local 
news media, newsletters, and the BLM web site (www.ca.blm.gov/arcata/) 
at least 15 days prior to the event. The minutes and 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.

Public Participation: Public meetings will be held throughout the plan 
scoping and preparation period. Participation is encouraged and will 
help determine the future management of the KRNCA public lands. In 
addition to the ongoing public participation process, formal 
opportunities for public input will be provided through comment on the 
alternatives and upon publication of the BLM draft RMP/EIS.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to, Bureau of Land 
Management, Arcata Field Office, 1695 Heindon Road, Arcata, CA 95521. 
Fax (707) 825-2301. Email comments to [email protected]. Documents 
pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the Arcata Field Office 
located in Arcata, California. Comments, including names and street 
addresses of respondents, will be available for public review at the 
Arcata Field Office located in Arcata, CA during regular business hours 
7:45 a.m. to 4:30 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information and/or to have 
your name added to our mailing list, call (707) 825-2300.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The creation of the KRNCA along with the 
changing needs and interests of the public necessitates a revision to 
the KRMP, which was completed in 1974. Various supplementary plans, 
amendments, and implementation of new laws have served to update the 27 
year old plan. Decisions in these existing plans that are still current 
will be carried forward in the new plan. However, changing uses, public 
interests, and resource conditions indicate that it is timely to update 
the plan in a comprehensive manner.
    Preliminary issues and management concerns have been identified by 
BLM personnel, other agencies, and in discussions with individuals and 
user groups. They represent the 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 include: Management and 
protection of natural/cultural resources and primitive values; 
recreation/visitor use and safety; and

[[Page 63449]]

integrating planning and management with community, tribal, and other 
agency needs.
    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; or
    3. Issues beyond the scope of this plan.
    Rationale will be provided in the plan for each issue placed in 
category two or three. In addition to these major issues, a number of 
management questions and concerns will be addressed in the plan. The 
public is encouraged to help identify these questions and concerns 
during the scoping phase.
    Preliminary planning criteria have also been identified to guide 
development of the plan decisions and selection of a preferred 
alternative. Some key criteria are as follows. The plan decisions will: 
1. Be completed in compliance with FLPMA, NEPA, King Range Act and 
other applicable laws and policies; 2. Recognize lifestyles and 
concerns of area residents; 3. Be consistent with NW Forest Plan; and 
4. Carry forward the zoning concept of the original KRMP, and existing 
relevant decisions from the original plan and amendments/supplements. 
The public will have an opportunity to provide comments and update 
planning criteria as part of the scoping process.
    An interdisciplinary approach will be used to develop the plan in 
order to consider the variety of resource issues and concerns 
identified.

Background Information

    On October 21, 1970, Congress passed the King Range Act (Pub. L. 
91-476) creating the KRNCA. The area encompasses approximately 63,000 
acres in Humboldt and Mendocino Counties, California. The KRNCA 
includes 35 miles of Pacific coastline backed by peaks climbing to 
4,000 feet. The area is bordered on the north and east by a mixture of 
public and private lands, and on the south by the Sinkyone Wilderness 
State Park.
    The KRMP was completed in 1974 and has been amended a number of 
times to reflect changing public needs, new laws, and executive orders. 
Several significant multi-discipline and activity plans have also been 
completed, including the KRNCA Extension Plan (1981), Allotment 
Management Plan (1984), Transportation Plan (1986), Cultural Resources 
Management Plan (1988), Wilderness Recommendations/EIS (1988), and 
Northwest Forest Plan (1994). Information and decisions from these 
existing plans may be incorporated into this plan revision.
    The King Range Act requires that the ``plan will be reviewed and 
reevaluated periodically''. To date, updates have been completed on an 
as-needed basis to respond to changing public demands, resource needs 
or public policies affecting a specific aspect of the management 
program. This effort will serve as the first comprehensive plan update 
since the original KRMP was completed in 1974.

Lynda Roush,
Arcata Field Manager.
[FR Doc. 02-25924 Filed 10-10-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-40-P