[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 173 (Friday, September 6, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54909-54910]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-21766]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLNVW00000.L16100000.DQ0000. LXSS015F0000 241A; 13-08807; MO 
4500049371; TAS: 14X5017]


Notice of Availability of the Proposed Winnemucca District 
Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement, NV

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 (FLPMA), as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has 
prepared a Proposed Resource Management Plan (RMP)/Final Environmental 
Impact Statement (EIS) for the Winnemucca District and by this notice 
is announcing its availability.

DATES: BLM planning regulations provide that any person who meets the 
conditions as described in the regulations may protest the BLM's 
Proposed RMP/Final EIS (43 CFR 1610.5-2). 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 of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS are available for 
public inspection at the BLM Winnemucca District Office, 5100 E 
Winnemucca Boulevard, Winnemucca, Nevada. Interested persons may also 
review the Proposed RMP/Final EIS on the Internet at http://www.blm.gov/nv/st/en/fo/wfo/blm_information/rmp.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 71383, Washington, DC 20024-1383.
    Overnight Mail: BLM Director (210), Attention: Brenda Williams, 20 
M Street SE., Room 2134LM, Washington, DC 20003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeff Johnson, RMP Team Lead, 
telephone: 775-861-6420; address: 5100 E Winnemucca Boulevard, 
Winnemucca, NV 89445; email [email protected]. Persons who use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to contact the above 
individual during normal business hours. The FIRS is available 24 hours 
a day, 7 days a week, to leave a message or question with the above 
individual. You will receive a reply during normal business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Winnemucca District Proposed RMP would 
replace the existing 1982 Sonoma-Gerlach and Paradise-Denio Management 
Framework Plans and the 1999 Paradise-Denio and Sonoma-Gerlach 
Management Framework Plan-Lands Amendment. The Proposed RMP/Final EIS 
has been developed using a collaborative planning process. 
Collaboration included working with nine cooperating agencies, 
development of alternatives using a sub-group of the Sierra Front-
Northwestern Great Basin Resource Advisory Council, input through 
coordination and consultation with Native American/tribal interests, 
and input based on public scoping and public comments received on the 
Draft Resource Management Plan/Draft Environmental Impact Statement. 
The Winnemucca District Proposed RMP decision area encompasses 
approximately 7.4 million acres of public land administered by the BLM 
in Humboldt, Pershing, and parts of Lander, Lyon, Churchill, and Washoe 
counties, Nevada. The Proposed RMP does not include decisions on 
private lands, State lands, Indian reservations, Federal lands 
administered by other agencies or lands within the District's Black 
Rock Desert-Highrock Canyon, Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area 
(NCA), except for administratively combining portions of two wild horse 
herd management areas into one herd management area. The NCA is managed 
in accordance with the 2004 Record of Decision and Resource Management 
Plan for the Black Rock Desert-High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails 
National Conservation Area and Associated Wilderness, and other 
Contiguous Lands in Nevada.
    The Winnemucca District Proposed RMP/Final EIS includes goals, 
objectives and management actions for protecting and preserving natural 
resources including wildlife habitat, sensitive and threatened or 
endangered species habitat, watersheds, and wild horses and burros. The 
Proposed RMP/Final EIS also addresses protection and preserving 
cultural resources, scenic values, lands with wilderness 
characteristics, National Historic Trails, and management of 
recreation. Multiple uses are addressed including: Management and 
forage allocations for livestock grazing; delineation of lands open, 
closed, or subject to special stipulations or mitigation measures 
relating to minerals; and management of lands and realty actions, 
including delineation of avoidance and exclusion areas applicable to 
rights-of-ways and land tenure adjustments. Recreation management 
includes designation of off-highway vehicle management areas. Three new 
areas of critical environmental concern (ACECs) are proposed. The ACECs 
are proposed to protect natural and cultural resource values and 
traditional Native American use areas. The proposed Pine Forest ACEC 
contains important wildlife habitat values including habitat for 
sensitive species. The proposed Raised Bog ACEC contains a unique 
floating bog that is useful for scientific research. The proposed 
Stillwater ACEC contains important cultural resources and many 
traditional Native American use areas including traditional cultural 
properties. Management direction to protect sensitive plant species is 
proposed for the existing Osgood Mountain Milkvetch ACEC.
    The Proposed RMP/Final EIS analyzes four management alternatives. 
Alternative A is the No Action Alternative, which is the continuation 
of current management; Alternative B emphasizes resource use; 
Alternative C emphasizes preservation and protection of ecosystems and 
contains two options: Option 1 allows livestock grazing and option 2 
does not allow livestock grazing; and Alternative D, which is the 
Proposed RMP and provides a balance between resource protection and 
resource use.
    Alternative D has been modified from the proposed alternative D in 
the Draft RMP/EIS based on public comments and input from the 
Cooperating Agencies. The proposed RMP balances resource uses and 
environmental protection, best fulfills the BLM's statutory mission and 
responsibilities as required under FLPMA, and complies with the BLM 
planning regulations.
    The Winnemucca District worked with nine cooperating agencies in 
the development of the Proposed RMP. The Cooperating Agencies are: U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Nevada 
Department of Wildlife, Nevada Department of Agriculture, Humboldt 
County, Pershing County, Washoe County, City of Winnemucca, and the N-2 
Grazing Board.
    The BLM issued a Notice of Intent to Prepare a Resource Management 
Plan

[[Page 54910]]

and Associated Environmental Impact Statement and initiated the public 
scoping process on March 25, 2005 (70 FR 15348). The BLM accepted 
scoping comments for 60 days. The draft RMP/draft EIS was made 
available for a 90-day public comment period on June 25, 2010 (75 FR 
36435).
    The BLM received 1,348 comments and 30,617 form letters pertaining 
to wild horses and burros in response to the Draft RMP/Draft EIS. 
Substantive comments were reviewed and incorporated as appropriate into 
the proposed plan.
    Notable issues raised in public comments include: Minerals, with an 
emphasis on areas available for minerals development; recreation 
management and designation of off-highway vehicle management areas; 
livestock grazing; fish and wildlife, including management of priority 
habitat; air quality; management of rights-of-way avoidance and 
exclusion areas; and management of wild horses and burros.
    Copies of the Proposed Winnemucca District RMP/Final EIS have been 
sent to affected tribal, Federal, State, and local government agencies 
and to other stakeholders.
    Instructions for filing a protest with the Director of the BLM 
regarding the Proposed RMP/Final EIS may be found in the ``Dear 
Reader'' letter of the Winnemucca District Proposed RMP/Final EIS and 
at 43 CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be in writing and mailed to the 
appropriate address, as set forth in the ADDRESSES section above. 
Emailed 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, the BLM will consider the emailed protest as an 
advance copy and it will receive full consideration. If you wish to 
provide the BLM with such advance notification, please direct emails to 
[email protected].
    Before including your phone number, email 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, 40 CFR 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2, 43 CFR 
1610.5

Amy Lueders,
State Director, Nevada.
[FR Doc. 2013-21766 Filed 9-5-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-HC-P