[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 179 (Friday, September 15, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Page 54518]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-15306]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[CA-180-06-1610-DP]


Notice of Availability of Draft Sierra Resource Management Plan 
and Draft Environmental Impact Statement, California

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969 (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and the Federal Land Policy and 
Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA, 43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the Bureau of 
Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Draft Resource Management Plan/
Environmental Impact Statement (RMP/EIS) for the Sierra planning area, 
managed by the Folsom Field Office. This notice announces the opening 
of the comment period.

DATES: To assure that they will be considered, BLM must receive written 
comments on the Draft RMP/EIS within 90 days following the date the 
Environmental Protection Agency publishes their Notice of Availability 
in the Federal Register. The BLM will announce future meetings or 
hearings and any other public involvement activities at least 15 days 
in advance through public notices, media news releases, and/or 
mailings.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Fax: 916-985-3259.
     Mail: 63 Natoma Street, Folsom, CA 95630.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Barnes, 916-985-4474.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The planning area for the Sierra RMP is the 
Folsom Field Office's area of management responsibility. The planning 
area comprises the 15 counties of Yuba, Sutter, Colusa, Nevada, Placer, 
El Dorado, Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, San Joaquin, Tuolumne, Mariposa, 
Sacramento, Stanislaus, and Merced. A total of 230,000 acres of public 
lands are administered by BLM in the planning area. In addition, 
approximately 300,000 acres of subsurface mineral estate are 
administered by the field office, which includes approximately 72,000 
acres of nonfederal surface lands where BLM administers the subsurface 
mineral estate. The decisions promulgated in the RMP will only apply to 
the BLM-administered public lands and mineral estate within the 
planning area. The Sierra Draft RMP/EIS has been developed through a 
collaborative planning process and considers four alternatives. The 
primary issues addressed include: Recreation; protection of sensitive 
natural and cultural resources; livestock grazing; energy and mineral 
development; land tenure adjustments; and motorized vehicle area and 
route designations. The Draft RMP/EIS includes Wild and Scenic River 
suitability recommendations, as well as proposals for Areas of Critical 
Environmental Concern (ACECs). The preferred alternative includes two 
river segment recommendations: South Fork American River (8.8 miles--
recreational) and North Fork and Main Mokelumne River (13.7 miles--
wild, scenic, recreational). The preferred alternative also proposes 
the following ACECs: Pine Hill Preserve ACEC--3,236 acres (proposed); 
Cosumnes River Preserve ACEC--2,035 acres (proposed); Spivey Pond 
ACEC--54 acres (proposed); Deadman's Flat ACEC--796 acres (proposed); 
Dutch Flat/Indiana Hill ACEC/RNA--320 acres (proposed); Bagby 
Serpentine ACEC--5,775 (proposed); Red Hills ACEC--7,184 acres 
(existing), 2,824 acres (proposed addition); Ione Manzanita ACEC--122 
acres (existing), 141 acres (proposed addition); and Limestone 
Salamander ACEC--1,728 acres (existing), 473 acres (proposed addition). 
One additional ACEC was considered but not included in the preferred 
alternative: Yuba Brownsville ACEC--198 acres. Use of public lands 
within these ACECs would vary, depending on the resources and/or values 
identified (see Chapter 2 of the Draft RMP/EIS), but would likely 
include limitations on motorized-vehicle use, mining, and other surface 
disturbing activities.
    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.
    Copies of the Sierra Draft RMP/Draft EIS are available in the 
Folsom Field Office at the above address; at the BLM California State 
Office, 2800 Cottage Way, Sacramento, CA; and online at http://www.ca.blm.gov/folsom.

    Dated: June 19, 2006.
James Eicher,
Field Manager.
[FR Doc. E6-15306 Filed 9-14-06; 8:45 am]
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