[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 211 (Friday, October 31, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62096-62097]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-26816]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

[CA-668-03-1610-DQ]


Notice of Availability of Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains 
National Monument Proposed Management Plan and Final Environmental 
Impact Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management.

ACTION: Notice of availability of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto 
proposed Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with Bureau of Land Management (BLM) planning 
regulations, title 43 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part 
1610.2(f)(4) and title 40 CFR part 1500, the BLM and Forest Service 
hereby gives notice that the proposed Management Plan/Final 
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) has been prepared for the Santa 
Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument. This Management Plan 
is a cooperative effort between the Department of the Interior, BLM, 
and the Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. The 272,000 acre 
National Monument encompasses 86,400 acres of Bureau of Land Management 
lands and 64,400 acres of Forest Service lands in the Coachella Valley 
and surrounding mountains. Additional land managing entities within the 
National Monument include the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, 
the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the California 
Department of Fish and Game, Riverside County, local jurisdictions, and 
private landowners. The management plan provides direction for 
coordination between the BLM, Forest Service, and various partners and 
outlines proposed strategies for protecting the values that the 
National Monument was established to protect.

DATES: BLM Planning Regulations (43 CFR 1610.5-2) state that any person 
who participated in the planning process, and has an interest that may 
be adversely affected, may protest. The protest must be filed within 30 
days of the date that the Environmental Protection Agency publishes 
this notice in the Federal Register. Instructions for filing of 
protests are described in the preface of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto 
Mountains National Monument Management Plan/FEIS and are included in 
the Supplementary Information section of this notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Greg Hill, Planning and Environmental 
Coordinator, Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument 
Management Plan, Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office, P.O. Box 
581260, 690 W. Garnet Avenue, North Palm Springs, CA 92258. Phone 
Number: 760-251-4800.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains 
National Monument was established by Public Law 106-351 and will be 
cooperatively managed by the Bureau of

[[Page 62097]]

Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS). The Santa 
Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument Act of 2000 affects 
only Federal lands and Federal interests located within the established 
boundaries. The BLM and the Forest Service will jointly manage Federal 
lands in the National Monument in coordination with the Agua Caliente 
Band of Cahuilla Indians, other Federal agencies, State agencies, and 
local governments.
    Copies of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National 
Monument Management Plan/FEIS have been sent to affected Federal, 
State, and Local Government agencies, interested parties and those who 
requested a copy of the Draft Management Plan/Draft EIS. Copies of the 
proposed Plan/Final EIS are available for public inspection at the BLM 
Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office, P.O Box 581260, 690 W. Garnet 
Avenue, North Palm Springs, CA 92258. Interested persons may also 
review the Proposed Management Plan/FEIS on the Internet at http://www.ca.blm.gov/palmsprings. Electronic (on CD-ROM) and paper copies may 
also be obtained by contacting Greg Hill at the aforementioned 
addresses and phone number.
    Comments on the Draft Management Plan/EIS received from the public 
and internal BLM and Forest Service review comments were incorporated 
into the proposed plan. Public comments resulted in the addition of 
clarifying text, but did not significantly change proposed land use 
decisions. The range of alternatives in this plan does not reevaluate 
planning decisions included in the BLM California Desert Conservation 
Area Plan (1980 as amended) or included in the Forest Service San 
Bernardino National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan (1989 as 
amended). Records of Decision will be prepared by the BLM and FS for 
the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument Management 
Plan in accordance with planning regulations at Title 43 CFR 1610 and 
NEPA. No decisions in the National Monument Management Plan are 
proposed amendments to the San Bernardino National Forest Land and 
Resource Management Plan (1989). Those decisions within the National 
Monument Management Plan that are proposed amendments to the California 
Desert Conservation Area Plan are subject to protest according to BLM 
regulations.
    Instructions for filing a protest with the Director of the BLM 
regarding the Proposed Plan/Final EIS may be found at 43 CFR 1610.5. A 
protest may only raise those issues which were submitted for the record 
during the planning process. New issues raised in the protest period 
should be directed to Greg Hill, Palm Springs-South Coast Field Office, 
(address provided previously in this notice) for consideration in plan 
implementation, as potential plan amendments, or as otherwise 
appropriate. Protests must be in writing, and to be considered 
``timely,'' the protest must be postmarked no later than the last day 
of the 30-day protest period. Also, although not a requirement, it is 
recommended that the protest be sent by certified mail, return receipt 
requested. E-mail and faxed protests will not be accepted as valid 
protests unless the protesting party also provides the original letter 
by either regular or overnight mail postmarked by the close of the 
protest period. Under these conditions, BLM will consider the e-mail or 
faxed protest as an advance copy and it will receive full 
consideration. If you wish to provide BLM with such advance 
notification, please direct faxed protests to the attention of the BLM 
protest coordinator at 202-452-5112, and e-mails to [email protected]. Please direct the follow-up letter to the appropriate 
address provided below.
    The protest must contain:
    a. The name, mailing address, telephone number, and interest of the 
person filing the protest.
    b. A statement of the part or parts of the management plan and the 
issue or issues being protested. To the extent possible, this should be 
done by reference to specific pages, paragraphs, sections, tables, 
maps, etc., included in the proposed management plan;
    c. A copy of all documents addressing the issue(s) that the 
protesting party submitted during the planning process or a statement 
of the date they were discussed for the record.
    d. A concise statement explaining why the protestor believes the 
State Director's decision is wrong. This is a critical part of the 
protest. Take care to document all relevant facts. As much as possible, 
reference or cite the planning documents, environmental analysis 
documents, and/or available planning records (i.e., meeting minutes or 
summaries, correspondence, etc.).
    A protest which merely expresses disagreement with proposed 
decision without supporting data will not provide additional basis for 
the Director's review of the decision. Please note that comments, 
including names and street addresses of respondents, are available for 
public review and/or release under the Freedom of Information Act 
(FOIA). Individual respondents may request confidentiality. Respondents 
who wish to withhold name and/or street address from public review or 
from disclosure under FOIA, must state this prominently at the 
beginning of the 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 or organizations or businesses, will be 
made available for public inspection in their entirety.
    All protests must be in writing and mailed to the following 
address:

Regular Mail: Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, P.O. Box 
66538, Washington, DC 20035.
Overnight Mail: Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, 1620 L 
Street, NW., Suite 1075, Washington, DC 20036.

    The BLM Director will promptly render a decision on the protest. 
The decision will be in writing and will be sent to the protesting 
party by certified mail, return receipt requested. The decision of the 
BLM Director shall be the final decision of the Department of the 
Interior.

    Dated: August 22, 2003.
Tracy Liegler,
Acting Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains, National Monument Manager.
    Dated: August 20, 2003.
Laurie Rosenthal,
District Ranger, San Jacinto Ranger District, San Bernardino National 
Forest.
[FR Doc. 03-26816 Filed 10-30-03; 8:45 am]
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