[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 193 (Friday, October 8, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56287-56288]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-22039]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[FF02R05000/FSRS34510200000/AZA-38417]


Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting 
for the Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: On behalf of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) 
and subject to valid existing rights, the Deputy Secretary of the 
Interior proposes to withdraw 1,464 acres of public lands from 
appropriation under the public land laws, including location and entry 
under the United States mining laws, and 1,134 acres of Federal surface 
estate public lands from appropriation under the public land laws for 
100 years to protect and reserve the land for management as part of the 
Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) located in La Paz 
and Mohave Counties, Arizona. Publication of this notice temporarily 
segregates the lands for up to two-years and announces to the public an 
opportunity to comment and request a public meeting on the proposed 
withdrawal.

DATES: Comments and requests for a public meeting must be received by 
January 6, 2022.

ADDRESSES: All comments and meeting requests should be sent to the 
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Arizona State Office, 1 North Central 
Avenue, Suite 800, Phoenix, AZ 85004; faxed to (602) 417-9452; or sent 
by email to [email protected]. The BLM will not 
consider comments via telephone calls.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Ouellett, Realty Specialist, BLM 
Arizona State Office, telephone: (602) 417-9561, email at 
[email protected]; or you may contact the BLM office at the address 
noted above. 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. You will receive a reply during normal business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The applicant is the FWS, and its petition/
application requests the Deputy Secretary of the Interior withdraw the 
following described public lands from

[[Page 56288]]

all forms of appropriation under the public land laws, including 
location and entry under the United States mining laws, subject to 
valid existing rights, and reserve them for wildlife refuge purposes 
for a 100-year term.

Gila and Salt River Meridian, Arizona

(Surface and Subsurface Estate Land)

T. 11 N., R. 17 W.,
    Sec. 20, E\1/2\, E\1/2\NW\1/4\, NE\1/4\SW\1/4\, S\1/2\SW\1/4\;
    Sec. 25, S\1/2\SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 26, SE\1/4\SW\1/4\, S\1/2\SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 28, N\1/2\, N\1/2\SW\1/4\, SE\1/4\SW\1/4\, SE\1/4\SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 34, N\1/2\NE\1/4\, SE\1/4\NE\1/4\, N\1/2\NW\1/4\;
    Sec. 36, N\1/2\SE\1/4\NE\1/4\.
T. 11 N., R. 18 W.,
    Sec. 12, SW\1/4\SW\1/4\ that portion lying northerly of the 
Havasu Lake National Wildlife Refuge boundary, as described in 
Executive Order 8647 of January 22, 1941, and southwesterly of the 
southwesterly right-of-way line of State Highway 95;
    Sec. 24, NE\1/4\NE\1/4\.

    The areas described aggregate approximately 1464 acres.

    The petition/application further requests that the Deputy Secretary 
of the Interior withdraw the following described public lands (surface 
estate only) from all forms of appropriation under the public land 
laws, subject to valid existing rights, and reserve them for wildlife 
refuge purposes for a 100-year term:

Gila and Salt River Meridian, Arizona

(Surface Estate Land)
T. 11 N., R. 17 W.,
    Sec. 19, lot 2, NE\1/4\SW\1/4\, S\1/2\SE\1/4\;
    Sec. 21, SW\1/4\SW\1/4\;
    Sec. 25, S\1/2\SW\1/4\;
    Sec. 27, SW\1/4\NE\1/4\, S\1/2\NW\1/4\;
    Sec. 29, E\1/2\NW\1/4\;
    Sec. 33, S\1/2\NE\1/4\, SE\1/4\NW\1/4\;
    Sec. 35, N\1/2\NE\1/4\, S\1/2\NE\1/4\SW\1/4\, NW\1/4\SW\1/4\, 
S\1/2\NW\1/4\SE\1/4\.
T. 11 N., R. 18 W.,
    Sec. 11, those portions of the SW\1/4\NE\1/4\, W\1/2\NW\1/4\, 
SE\1/4\NW\1/4\, NE\1/4\SW\1/4\, N\1/2\NW\1/4\SW\1/4\, N\1/2\SE\1/
4\SW\1/4\, NE\1/4\SE\1/4\, W\1/2\SE\1/4\, SE\1/4\SE\1/4\ lying 
northerly of the Havasu Lake National Wildlife boundary, as 
described in Executive Order 8647 of January 22,1941, and southerly 
of the southwesterly right-of-way line of State Route 95.
    Sec. 13, those portions of the W\1/2\NE\1/4\SW\1/4\, NW\1/
4\SW\1/4\, SE\1/4\SW\1/4\, S\1/2\SW\1/4\SE\1/4\, SW\1/4\SE\1/4\SE\1/
4\ lying southerly of the Havasu Lake National Wildlife boundary, as 
described in Executive Order 8647 of January 22, 1941.

    The areas described aggregate approximately 1,134 acres.

    The Deputy Secretary of the Interior approved the FWS's petition. 
Therefore, the petition/application constitutes a withdrawal proposal 
of the Secretary of the Interior (43 CFR 2310.1-3(e)).
    The use of a right-of-way, interagency agreement, or cooperative 
agreement would not provide adequate protection of the wildlife refuge.
    No additional water rights will fulfill the purpose of this new 
withdrawal.
    There are no suitable alternative sites since these lands are 
located within the Bill Williams River NWR.
    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.
    Notice is hereby given that an opportunity for a public meeting is 
afforded in connection with the proposed withdrawal. All interested 
persons who desire a public meeting for the purpose of being heard on 
the proposed withdrawal must submit a written request to the BLM 
Arizona State Director no later than January 6, 2022. If the authorized 
officer determines that a public meeting will be held, a notice of the 
time and place will be published in the Federal Register and a local 
newspaper at least 30 days before the scheduled date of the meeting.
    For a period until October 9, 2023 the lands described above will 
be segregated from all forms of appropriation under the public land 
laws, unless the application is denied or canceled, or the withdrawal 
is approved prior to that date. This application will be processed in 
accordance with the regulations set-forth in 43 CFR part 2300.

Raymond Suazo,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2021-22039 Filed 10-7-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P