[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 88 (Friday, May 7, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25288-25289]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-10665]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[ID-320-1610 DQ-050D]


Notice of Availability of the Proposed Resource Management Plan 
and Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Pocatello Field 
Office, Idaho

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, as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a 
Proposed Resource Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement

[[Page 25289]]

(PRMP/FEIS) for the Pocatello Field Office and by this notice is 
announcing its availability.

DATES: BLM planning regulations at 43 CFR 1610.5-2 state that any 
person who meets the conditions described may protest the BLM's PRMP/
FEIS. A person who meets the conditions and files a protest must file 
the protest within 30 days of the date that the Environmental 
Protection Agency publishes its Notice of Availability in the Federal 
Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Pocatello Field Office PRMP/FEIS have been 
sent to tribal governments, Federal, state, and local government 
agencies and to other stakeholders. Copies of the PRMP/FEIS are 
available for public inspection at the Pocatello Field Office, Bureau 
of Land Management, 4350 Cliffs Drive, Pocatello, Idaho 83204. 
Interested persons may also review the PRMP/FEIS on the Internet at 
http://www.blm.gov/id/st/en/prog/planning.1.html. All protests must be 
in writing and mailed to one of the following addresses:

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information contact Terry 
Lee Smith, RMP Project Manager, telephone (208) 478-6340; 4350 Cliffs 
Drive, Pocatello, Idaho 83204; e-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The planning area covers approximately 
613,800 acres of public lands within nine counties in southeastern 
Idaho. The Pocatello RMP, when completed, will provide management 
direction for resources and resource uses. Planning issues addressed in 
the PRMP/FEIS include: Off-highway vehicle management, recreation 
management, sagebrush ecosystems, public access, and phosphate mining.
    The PRMP is essentially the same as the BLM's preferred alternative 
of the Draft RMP/Draft EIS and provides the most reasonable and 
practical approach to public lands management in the planning area. The 
PRMP allows flexibility in adjusting to changing conditions over time 
while emphasizing a level of protection, restoration, and enhancement 
to meet the overall needs of the resources, use allocations, and public 
services into the future.
    In addition, the PRMP/FEIS would designate the 400-acre Petticoat 
Peak Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) to provide 
protection to unique native plants. Several decisions associated with 
the Petticoat Peak ACEC designation include: Designating the area 
``closed'' to off-highway vehicles, excluding rights-of-way and leasing 
fluid minerals with a ``No Surface Occupancy'' stipulation. The FEIS 
also analyzes the direct and indirect effects of fluid minerals leasing 
with standard terms and conditions and applicable special stipulations.
    The Pocatello Draft RMP/Draft EIS was published for public comment 
on January 5, 2007. During the 90-day public comment period following 
its release, the BLM received 52 comment letters, e-mails, and faxes. 
These submissions included about 1,400 individual comments, which the 
BLM has responded to in the PRMP/FEIS. Comments on the Draft RMP/Draft 
EIS received from the public and internal BLM review were considered 
and incorporated as appropriate into the proposed plan. Public comments 
resulted in minor changes intended to clarify proposed management 
direction and update the analysis of potential environmental impacts, 
but did not significantly change proposed land use decisions.
    Instructions for filing a protest with the Director of the BLM 
regarding the PRMP/FEIS may be found in the ``Dear Reader Letter'' of 
the Pocatello Field Office PRMP/FEIS and at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. E-mail and 
faxed protests will not be accepted 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, 
the BLM will consider the e-mail or faxed protest as an advance copy 
and it will receive full consideration. If you wish to provide the BLM 
with such advance notification, please direct faxed protests to the 
attention of the BLM protest coordinator at 202-912-7212, and e-mails 
to [email protected].
    All protests, including the follow-up letter to e-mails or faxes, 
must be in writing and mailed to the appropriate address, as set forth 
in the ADDRESSES section above.
    Before including your phone number, e-mail address, or other 
personal identifying information in your protest, you should be aware 
that your entire protest--including your personal identifying 
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can 
ask us in your protest to withhold your personal identifying 
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be 
able to do so.

    Authority:  40 CFR 1506.6, 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2, and 1610.

Peter J. Ditton,
Bureau of Land Management, Acting Idaho State Director.
[FR Doc. 2010-10665 Filed 5-6-10; 8:45 am]
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