[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 54 (Tuesday, March 21, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17006-17007]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-05659]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLMT924000-L14400000-ET0000; SDM-112598]


Notice of Application for Withdrawal and Notification of Public 
Meeting, Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek Watershed; South Dakota

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of withdrawal application.

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SUMMARY: The United States Forest Service (USFS) has filed an 
application with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) requesting that 
the Secretary of the Interior withdraw 20,574 acres of National Forest 
System (NFS) lands in Pennington County, South Dakota, from settlement, 
sale, location, or entry under the public land laws; location and entry 
under the United States mining laws; and leasing under the mineral and 
geothermal leasing laws for 20 years, subject to valid existing rights, 
to protect the cultural and natural resources of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek Watershed, including municipal water for Rapid 
City and Ellsworth Air Force Base, from the adverse impacts of minerals 
exploration and development. Publication of this notice segregates the 
lands from the laws specified for up to 2 years, subject to valid 
existing rights. This notice initiates a 90-day public comment period 
and announces a public meeting regarding the USFS application.

DATES: Comments must be received by June 20, 2023. The USFS and the BLM 
will hold a joint public meeting on Wednesday, April 26, 2023, 4-8 
p.m., Mountain Time (MT), at the Best Western Ramkota Hotel, Conference 
Hall, 2111 N. LaCrosse Street, Rapid City, South Dakota 57701.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be submitted to: Black Hills 
National Forest via https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/Public/CommentInput?project=NP-3479. Information regarding the proposed 
withdrawal will be available at the Black Hills National Forest, Forest 
Supervisor's Office, 1019 N. 5th Street, Custer, South Dakota 57730 and 
at the BLM Montana/Dakotas State Office, 5001 Southgate Drive, 
Billings, Montana 59101. Comments sent by email will not be accepted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bryan Karchut, Forest Supervisor, 
Black Hills National Forest, telephone (605) 515-9861, email: 
[email protected], or you may contact the BLM office at the 
address noted earlier. Individuals in the United States who are deaf, 
deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 
(TTY, TDD, or Tele Braille) to access telecommunications relay 
services. Individuals outside the United States should use the relay 
services offered within their country to make international calls to 
the point-of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The withdrawal application includes the 
following NFS lands located in the Black Hills National Forest:

Black Hills Meridian, South Dakota

T. 1 N., R. 4 E.,
    Sec. 1;
    Sec. 2, that part lying easterly of the Pactola Reservoir--Rapid 
Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 11, that part lying easterly of the Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Secs. 12 and 13;
    Sec. 14, that part lying easterly of the Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 23, that part lying northeasterly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 24, that part lying northeasterly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 25, that part lying northeasterly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary.
T. 2 N., R. 4 E.,
    Sec. 13, lots 1 thru 5, SW1/4SW1/4, and SE1/4, except Tract A of 
H.E.S. No. 241, that part lying southerly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 14, lot 2, SW1/4, W1/2SE1/4, and SE1/4SE1/4, that part 
lying southeasterly of Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed 
boundary;
    Sec. 22, SE1/4SE1/4, those portions lying southerly and easterly 
of Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 23, that part lying easterly of Pactola Reservoir--Rapid 
Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 24, except Tract A of H.E.S. No. 241;
    Sec. 25, except M.S. No. 1948 and M.S. No. 2016;
    Sec. 26, that part lying easterly of Pactola Reservoir--Rapid 
Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 27, those portions lying easterly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 34, lots 1, 4, 6, and 9, E1/2NE1/4, NW1/4NE1/4, and S1/
2SE1/4SE1/4, that part lying easterly of Pactola Reservoir--Rapid 
Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 35, except M.S. No. 2047, that part lying northeasterly of 
Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 36, except M.S. No. 1948;

[[Page 17007]]

    M.S. No. 1019, that part lying southerly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    M.S. No. 2047.
T. 1 N., R. 5 E.,
    Sec. 2, that part lying southwesterly of Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Secs. 3 thru 7;
    Sec. 8, except M.S. No. 1918;
    Secs. 9 and 10;
    Sec. 11, that part lying northwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 14, that part lying northwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 15, N1/2, N1/2SW1/4, N1/2SE1/4, and NE1/4NE1/4SW1/4SE1/4, 
that part lying northerly of the Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek 
subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 16, that part lying northwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 17, except M.S. Nos. 1916 and 1918;
    Sec. 18, N1/2, NE1/4SW1/4, and SE1/4;
    Sec. 19, NE1/4, NW1/4NW1/4, S1/2NW1/4, S1/2, that part lying 
northwesterly of the Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed 
boundary;
    Sec. 20, except M.S. No. 1916, that part lying northerly of the 
Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 21, NW1/4, that part lying northwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 30, W1/2, that part lying northwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary.
    H.E.S. No. 106;
    H.E.S. No. 599;
    M.S. No. 891.
T. 2 N., R. 5 E.,
    Sec. 18, that part lying southerly of the Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 19, that part lying southwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 20, SW1/4, that part lying southwesterly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 28, SW1/4, that part lying southerly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 29, that part lying westerly of the Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 30, except M.S. No. 1948 and M.S. No. 2016;
    Sec. 31, lots 5 and 6, lots 10 thru 19, NE1/4, E1/2NW1/4, NW1/
4NE1/4SE1/4, W1/2SE1/4SE1/4SE1/4, and those portions of M.S. No. 504 
further described as Town of Silver City, Blocks A, B, C, D, and E, 
lots 3 thru 16 and lots 23 thru 32 of Block 9, lots 4 and 5, lots 12 
thru 15, lots 27 thru 30 of Block 12, and Blocks 19 and 20;
    Sec. 32, except M.S. No. 2040, that part lying southwesterly of 
the Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 33, that part lying southerly of the Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 34, that part lying southerly of the Pactola Reservoir--
Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    Sec. 35, those portions lying westerly of the Pactola 
Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary;
    M.S. No 2040, except W1/2SE1/4SE1/4SE1/4 of sec. 31.

    The Pactola Reservoir--Rapid Creek subwatershed boundary described 
within this land description was derived from GIS and used for 
convenience in computing acreage. This subwatershed is also known as 
Hydrological Unit Code (HUC) 101201100110. This land description 
intends to include all public lands administered by the USFS within 
this subwatershed. The actual boundary is intended to be the location 
of said subwatershed as it exists on the ground.
    The areas described aggregate approximately 20,574 acres.
    The purpose for the withdrawal requested by the USFS is to protect 
the cultural and natural resources of the Pactola Reservoir--Rapid 
Creek Watershed, including municipal water for Rapid City and Ellsworth 
Air Force Base, from the adverse impacts of minerals exploration and 
development.
    The use of a right-of-way, interagency agreement, or cooperative 
agreement would not provide adequate protection of cultural and natural 
resources.
    No additional water rights will be needed to fulfill the purpose of 
the requested withdrawal.
    There are no suitable alternative sites, as the described lands 
contain the resource values that need protection.
    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 the USFS and the BLM will hold a joint 
public meeting in connection with the withdrawal application on 
Wednesday, April 26, 2023, from 4-8 p.m. MT, at the Best Western 
Ramkota Hotel, Conference Hall, 2111 N. LaCrosse St., Rapid City, SD 
57701. The USFS will publish a notice of the time and place in a local 
newspaper at least 30 days before the scheduled date of the meeting. 
During the 90-day comment period, the BLM and USFS will hold additional 
meetings in other areas of the State, notices of which will be provided 
in local newspapers or on agency websites.
    For a period until March 21, 2025, the NFS lands described earlier 
will be segregated from settlement, sale, location, or entry under the 
public land laws, location and entry under the United States mining 
laws, and leasing under the mineral and geothermal leasing laws, 
subject to valid existing rights, unless the application is denied or 
canceled, or the withdrawal is approved prior to that date.
    Licenses, permits, cooperative agreements, or discretionary land 
use authorizations of a temporary nature may be allowed with the 
approval of the authorized officer of the USFS during the temporary 
segregation period if they would comply with applicable USFS land use 
plans for public lands and NFS lands located within the requested 
withdrawal boundary.
    The application will be processed in accordance with the 
regulations set forth in 43 CFR part 2300.

(Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1714)


Kimberly O. Prill,
Acting Montana/Dakotas State Director.
[FR Doc. 2023-05659 Filed 3-20-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3411-15-P