[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 10 (Friday, January 14, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2653-2654]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-732]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[OR-056-1610DQ011H; HAG-04-0240]


Notice of Availability of the Proposed Upper Deschutes Resource 
Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 
(FLPMA) of 1976, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, 
the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Proposed Resource 
Management Plan (PRMP) and Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) 
for the Upper Deschutes portion of the Deschutes Resource Area of the 
Prineville District. This Notice of Availability also serves as a 
notice of realty action in accordance with 43 CFR 2920.4 to be made 
available for non-competitive lease under Section 302(b) of FLPMA for 
military use by the Oregon Military Department and National Guard.

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 its 
notice in the Federal Register. Instructions for filing of protests are 
described in the ``Dear Interested Party'' letter of the Upper 
Deschutes PRMP/FEIS and included in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION 
section of this Notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mollie Chaudet, Project Manager, 
Bureau of Land Management, 3050 N.E. Third St., Prineville, Oregon, 
97754, telephone (541-416-6872), fax (541-416-6798), or e-mail ([email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This planning activity encompasses 
approximately 400,000 acres of public land in the Deschutes Resource 
Area, Prineville District, and is located primarily in Deschutes, 
Crook, and Jefferson Counties in central Oregon. The BLM has worked and 
will continue to work closely with all interested parties to identify 
management decisions that are best suited to the needs of the public. 
Final decisions will revise the portion of the Brothers La-Pine 
Resource Management Plan (1989) included in the Upper Deschutes 
planning area boundary, and will modify the boundary of the Two Rivers 
RMP. Some management direction will be clarified for the Middle 
Deschutes and Lower Crooked River Wild and Scenic River Plans. The 
Upper Deschutes Resource Management Plan will also incorporate 
strategies and direction provided by the National and Central Oregon 
Fire Management Plan.
    This land use plan focuses on the principles of multiple use 
management and sustained yield as prescribed by Section 202 of the 
FLPMA. The PRMP/FEIS considers and analyzes seven alternatives. These 
alternatives were developed based on a unique collaborative process. 
The Deschutes Provincial Advisory Committee chartered a working group 
including tribal, federal, state and local governments, private 
citizens, and interest groups. The working group reached consensus on 
the range of alternatives, reviewed public comments on the Draft EIS, 
and reached consensus on changes to the Draft Preferred Alternative.
    The alternatives detailed in the PRMP/FEIS provide for a wide array 
of land use allocations and management direction as well as variable 
levels of resource protection, commodity production, and authorized 
land and resource uses. Alternative 7, the BLM preferred alternative 
(as modified by public comment on the Draft RMP/EIS,) is the basis for 
the goals, objectives, and guidelines included in the Proposed RMP. The 
PRMP provides a balance of land and resource uses across the planning 
area and provides the framework for making present and future decisions 
for authorizing activities, such as grazing and mineral uses, 
considering the significant population growth anticipated in the area 
over the next 10-20 years.
    The plan will also allocate lands within the planning area for the 
long-term training use of the Oregon Military Department and National 
Guard. The lands identified for military use within the Upper Deschutes 
RMP are proposed for non-competitive lease under Section 302(b) of 
FLPMA. The legal description of the lands proposed for lease are 
identified within the PRMP/FEIS.
    Copies of the Upper Deschutes PRMP/FEIS have been sent to affected 
Federal, State, and local government agencies and to interested 
parties. The PRMP/FEIS is available for public inspection at the 
Prineville District Office in Prineville, Oregon, during regular 
business hours (7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 
holidays). Copies are also available at the Deschutes, Jefferson, and 
Crook County Libraries. Interested persons may also review the PRMP/
FEIS on the Internet at: http://www.or.blm.gov/Prineville/Deschutes_RMP/Home.htm. Comments on the Draft RMP/EIS received from the public 
and internal BLM review comments were incorporated into the proposed 
plan where appropriate. Comments resulted in clarifications, technical 
corrections, changes to the alternatives, and changes to the analysis.
    Instructions for filing a protest with the Director of the BLM 
regarding the PRMP/FEIS may be found at 43 CFR 1610.5. A protest may 
only raise those issues that were submitted for the record during the 
planning process. 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. To be considered complete, your protest must 
contain (at a minimum) the following information:
    (1) Name, mailing address, telephone number, and the affected 
interest of the person filing the protest(s).
    (2) A statement of the part or parts of the proposed plan being 
protested. To the extent possible, reference specific pages, 
paragraphs, and sections of the document.
    (3) A copy of all your documents addressing the issue or issues 
which were discussed with the BLM for the record.
    (4) A concise statement explaining why the proposed decision is 
believed to be incorrect. This is a critical part of your protest. 
Document all relevant facts, as much as possible. A protest merely 
expressing disagreement with the State Director's proposed decision 
without providing any supporting data will not be considered a valid 
protest.
    All protests must be in writing and mailed to the following 
address:

Regular Mail: Director, WO-210/LS-1075, Bureau of Land Management, 
Attn: Brenda Hudgens-Williams, Department of the Interior, P.O. Box 
66538, Washington, DC 20240.
Overnight Mail: Director, WO-210/LS-1075, Bureau of Land Management,

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Attn: Brenda Hudgens-Williams, Department of the Interior, 1620 L 
Street, NW., Suite 1075, Washington, DC 20036.

    To be considered timely, your protest must be postmarked no later 
than the last day of the protest period. Though not a requirement, we 
suggest you send your protest by certified mail, return receipt 
requested. You are also encouraged, but not required, to forward a copy 
of your protest to the Project Manager at the address listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION above. This may allow us to resolve the protest 
through clarification of intent or alternative dispute resolution 
methods.
    Please note that protests, including names and street addresses, 
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 their 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 
request will be honored to the extent allowed by law. All submissions 
from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying 
themselves as representatives of official organizations or businesses, 
will be made available for public inspection in their entirety.
    The Director will promptly render a decision on the protest. This 
decision will be in writing and will be sent to the protesting party by 
certified mail, return receipt requested. The decision of the Director 
shall be the final decision of the Department of the Interior.

Elaine M. Brong,
Oregon State Director.
[FR Doc. 05-732 Filed 1-13-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-33-P