[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 57 (Thursday, March 26, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13222-13223]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-6792]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLAKA01000. L16100000. DQ0000. LXSI086L0000]


Notice of Intent To Prepare Ring of Fire Resource Management Plan 
Amendment and Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, Alaska

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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[[Page 13223]]

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Anchorage Field Office, 
Anchorage, Alaska, intends to prepare a Resource Management Plan (RMP) 
Amendment with an associated Supplemental Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) for the Haines planning block of the Ring of Fire RMP 
and by this notice is announcing the beginning of the public scoping 
process.

DATES: The BLM will announce public scoping meetings in Anchorage, 
Haines, and Skagway, Alaska through local news media, newsletters, and 
the BLM Web site (http://www.blm.gov/ak) at least 15 days prior to each 
meeting. We will provide formal opportunities for public comment upon 
publication of the Draft RMP Amendment and Supplemental EIS, including 
a 90-day public comment period. Please submit your comments on or 
before June 24, 2009.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Web Site: http://www.blm.gov/ak.
     E-Mail: [email protected].
     Fax: (907) 267-1267.
     Mail: BLM-Anchorage Field Office, Attention--Ring of Fire 
Amendment, 4700 BLM Road, Anchorage, AK 99507.
    Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the 
Anchorage Field Office, 4700 BLM Road, Anchorage, AK 99507.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information and/or to have your 
name added to the mail list, contact Beth Maclean, Ring of Fire 
Amendment Team Leader, ([email protected]) at (907) 267-1214.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document provides notice that the BLM 
Anchorage Field Office, Anchorage, Alaska, intends to prepare an RMP 
Amendment with an associated Supplemental EIS for the Haines planning 
block of the Ring of Fire RMP and announces the beginning of the public 
scoping process.
    The planning area is located in southeast Alaska. Bound by the 
Canadian border to the north and east and the Haines Borough boundary 
to the south and west, the planning area encompasses the towns of 
Haines and Skagway. This planning activity encompasses approximately 
320,000 acres of public land. The plan will fulfill the needs and 
obligations set forth by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 
the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA), and BLM management 
policies. 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 purpose of the public scoping process and public scoping 
meetings is to identify relevant issues that will influence the scope 
of the environmental analysis and Supplemental EIS alternatives. These 
issues also guide the planning process. You may submit comments on 
issues and planning criteria in writing to the BLM at any public 
scoping meeting, or you may submit them to the BLM using one of the 
methods listed in the ADDRESSES section above. Before including your 
address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying 
information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire 
comment--including your personal identifying information--may be made 
publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to 
withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we 
cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
    Preliminary issues and management concerns identified by BLM 
personnel, other agencies, and individuals and user groups represent 
the BLM's knowledge to date regarding existing issues and concerns with 
current land management. The major issue that will be addressed in this 
planning effort relates to potential impacts on wildlife populations 
from recreation activities occurring on BLM-managed lands in the Haines 
Block.
    The BLM will analyze the following decisions through the RMP 
Amendment and Supplemental EIS:
     Whether to designate any of the Haines Block lands as an 
Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC),
     Whether to retain the Haines Block Special Recreation 
Management Area (SRMA) designation, and
     What terms and conditions for special recreation permits 
in the Haines Block lands should be developed.
    If the Haines Block SRMA designation is retained, the BLM, through 
the RMP Amendment and Supplemental EIS, will:
     Decide whether to change the boundaries of the SRMA,
     Make SRMA decisions as outlined in the Appendix C of the 
H-1601-1 Land Use Planning Handbook, and
     Develop a Special Recreation Management Plan (SRMP) for 
the Haines Block SRMA.
    The BLM will evaluate the identified issues to be addressed in the 
plan and will place them into one of three categories:
    1. Issues to be resolved in the plan,
    2. Issues to be resolved through policy or administrative action, 
or
    3. Issues beyond the scope of this plan.
    The BLM will explain in the plan why an issue was 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 include the following:
    1. Multiple use is the primary function of BLM-administered public 
lands.
    2. Areas to be addressed are the surface acres administered by the 
BLM in the Haines planning block.
    3. Decisions will be limited to those related to recreation, 
wildlife, travel management, an ACEC and an SRMA.
    4. Valid existing rights will be protected throughout the planning 
area.
    5. Plans and policies of adjacent land owners/managers will be 
considered.
    6. The BLM will encourage and participate in collaborative 
planning.
    7. Identification, designation, and protection of an SRMA and an 
ACEC will receive full consideration.
    8. The BLM will comply with all relevant laws, statutes, 
regulations, manuals, and handbooks.
    9. Subsistence uses will be considered and adverse impacts 
minimized in accordance with Section 810 of ANILCA.
    10. This resource management plan amendment will conform to the 
Bureau's H-1601-1 Land Use Planning Handbook.
    11. The plan will be consistent with the Alaska Land Health 
Standards.
    12. Areas of proposed ACEC designation will meet the criteria found 
in 43 CFR 1610.7-2.
    The BLM will use an interdisciplinary approach while developing the 
plan to ensure consideration of the variety of resource issues and 
concerns identified.

Thomas P. Lonnie,
State Director.
 [FR Doc. E9-6792 Filed 3-25-09; 8:45 am]
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