[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 178 (Friday, September 13, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48373-48374]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-19870]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLORV00400.L16100000.MQ0000.19X.HAG 19-0114]


Notice of Intent To Prepare the Louse Canyon Geographic 
Management Area Rangeland Health Management Actions Environmental 
Impact Statement To Analyze Rangeland Health Management Actions in the 
Louse Canyon Geographic Management Area of the Malheur Field Office, 
Vale District, Oregon

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Intent.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 
of 1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Malheur Field 
Office, Vale District, Vale, Oregon, intends to prepare an 
environmental impact statement (EIS) and, by this notice, is announcing 
the beginning of the public scoping period for the analysis of 
rangeland health management actions in the Louse Canyon Geographic 
Management Area (LCGMA).

DATES: The BLM requests that comments be submitted by October 15, 2019. 
The date(s) and location(s) of any scoping meeting(s) will be announced 
at least 15 days in advance through local media and the BLM website, 
www.blm.gov.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Website: https://go.usa.gov/xQeac.
     Email: [email protected].
     Fax: 541-473-6213.
     Mail: LCGMA, c/o Vale District BLM 100 Oregon Street, 
Vale, OR 97918. Attention: Todd Allai or Dustin Fowler.
    Documents associated with this proposal are available at the 
Malheur Field Office, BLM Vale District Office, 100 Oregon Street, 
Vale, OR 97918, or at https://go.usa.gov/xQeac.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Project leads Todd Allai, 541-473-
6355, or Dustin Fowler, 541-473-6250, via phone or via email at: 
[email protected]. Please contact Mr. Allai or Mr. 
Fowler to have your name added to the project mailing list. Persons who 
use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal 
Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to contact the above individual 
during normal business hours. The FRS 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 BLM Vale District is initiating an EIS 
in order to analyze alternative livestock management and restoration 
actions that would allow the district to make progress toward meeting 
Oregon/Washington (OR/WA) Standards for Rangeland Health and Guidelines 
for Livestock Grazing Management (Standards and Guidelines) in the 
LCGMA. The alternatives will consider grazing practices, permit 
renewals, and the implementation of rangeland restoration and rangeland 
improvement projects. Proposed rangeland management actions include: 
Alternative grazing systems and schedules, upland sagebrush habitat 
restoration, and riparian habitat restoration.
    The LCGMA is comprised of five grazing allotments (536,434 acres) 
in Malheur County, Oregon, and two grazing allotments (11,262 acres) in 
Humboldt County, Nevada. The Greater Sage-grouse Approved Resource 
Management Plan Amendment and Record of Decision for Oregon identified 
the entire planning area as habitat for Greater Sage-grouse. Seventy-
four percent of the planning area is identified as priority habitat, 
and the remaining twenty-six percent of the planning area is classified 
as general habitat. Approximately twenty percent of the LCGMA was 
impacted by the 2012 Long Draw fire.
    An OR/WA Standards and Guidelines evaluation of the area was 
completed in 2018 and can be found at https://go.usa.gov/xQeac. The 
evaluation determined that certain OR/WA Standards and Guidelines are 
not being met within the LCGMA. Preliminary determinations of causal 
factors in not meeting standards identify wildfire and invasive annual 
grass species as likely significant causal factors for not meeting or 
making progress toward upland-related standards. Existing permitted 
livestock grazing is identified as a likely significant causal factor 
for not meeting or making progress toward meeting riparian and aquatic 
habitat-related standards. The BLM is proposing to analyze actions that 
support proper livestock grazing management practices and improve the 
ecological condition of the LCGMA to address making progress toward 
attainment of OR/WA Standards and Guidelines.
    Through the public scoping process, the BLM is seeking input on 
issues,

[[Page 48374]]

actions, and alternatives that should be addressed by the EIS. 
Potential issues include the effects of proposed management actions on: 
Livestock grazing, the spread of invasive species, the threat of 
wildfire, sagebrush ecosystems health, and Greater Sage-grouse habitat. 
Potential management actions include: Alternative grazing systems and 
schedules, upland sagebrush habitat restoration actions (invasive 
annual grass treatments, soil stabilization, native vegetation species 
diversification, shrub establishment, sagebrush thinning, and targeted 
grazing), riparian/meadow habitat restoration actions (erosion and 
water-related flow control structures and watering trough relocation), 
and livestock administration actions (fence construction, water 
developments, livestock trailing, and modifications to livestock range 
improvements).
    The Malheur Field Office will consult with the McDermitt Shoshone-
Paiute Tribe, Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian 
Reservation, Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Indian 
Reservation, and the Burns-Paiute Tribe throughout the EIS process. 
Federal, State, and local agencies, along with other stakeholders that 
may be interested or affected by the proposal, are invited to 
participate in the scoping process and, if eligible, may request or be 
requested by the BLM to participate as a cooperating agency. The BLM 
will coordinate with Federal, State, and local officials and the 
affected grazing permittees throughout the EIS process.
    Comments can be submitted to the BLM using one of the methods 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice. Comments received will 
help the BLM determine the scope and breadth of the EIS. To be most 
helpful, please submit comments by the close of the 30-day scoping 
period or within 15 days after the last public meeting--whichever is 
later. Before including your address, phone number, email 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.
    The BLM will use an interdisciplinary approach to develop the EIS. 
Specialists with expertise in the following disciplines will be 
involved in the planning process: Range management, wildlife biology, 
archaeology, hydrology and riparian resources, botany, soil science, 
economics, and outdoor recreation.

    Authority:  40 CFR 1501.7 and 43 CFR 1610.2.

Theresa M. Hanley,
Acting State Director, Oregon/Washington.
[FR Doc. 2019-19870 Filed 9-12-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-33-P