[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 129 (Friday, July 7, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43384-43385]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-14034]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[BLM_CO_FRN_MO4500170164]


Notice of Availability of the Proposed Resource Management Plan 
and Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Eastern Colorado 
Resource Management Plan, Colorado

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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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) has prepared a 
Proposed Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Final Environmental Impact 
Statement (EIS) for the Eastern Colorado RMP and by this notice is 
announcing the start of a 30-day protest period of the Proposed RMP and 
public comment on proposed target shooting closures.

DATES: This notice announces a 30-day protest period to the BLM on the 
Proposed RMP beginning with the date following the Environmental 
Protection Agency's (EPA) publication of its Notice of Availability 
(NOA) of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS in the Federal Register. The EPA 
usually publishes its NOAs on Fridays. Protests must be postmarked or 
electronically submitted on the BLM's ePlanning site during the 30-day 
protest period.
    In accordance with the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, 
Management, and Recreation Act of 2019 (Dingell Act, Pub. L. 116-9, 
Section 4103), the BLM is announcing the opening of a 60-day public 
comment period on the proposed closure of recreational target shooting 
(referred to as ``target shooting'' in the RMP) near residences and at 
certain rock climbing areas, trail networks, campgrounds, and other 
high-use recreation sites identified in the Proposed RMP alternative.

ADDRESSES: The Proposed RMP and Final EIS is available on the BLM 
ePlanning project website at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/39877. Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined 
online at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/39877 and at 
the Royal Gorge Field Office.
    Instructions for filing a protest of the proposed Eastern Colorado 
Resource Management Plan can be found at: https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/filing-a-plan-protest and at 43 
CFR 1610.5-2.
    You may submit comments on the proposed shooting closures by the 
following methods:
    Mail: RMP Project Manager Royal, Gorge Field Office, 3028 E Main 
St., Ca[ntilde]on City, CO 81212.
    Email: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Smeins, Project Manager, 
telephone (719) 252-8212; address 3028 E Main St., Ca[ntilde]on City, 
CO 81212; email [email protected]. Individuals in the United States who 
are deaf, deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may 
dial 711 (TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay 
services for contacting Mr. Smeins. 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 BLM prepared the Eastern Colorado 
Proposed RMP/Final EIS to evaluate and revise the management strategy 
for resources, resource uses, and special designations on public lands 
managed by the Royal Gorge Field Office, which is the planning area for 
the RMP. Existing management decisions for public lands and resources 
in the Royal Gorge Field Office are currently described in two 
documents: the 1986 Northeast RMP, as amended; and the 1996 Royal Gorge 
RMP, as amended.
    The planning area encompasses approximately 35 million acres of 
land under various jurisdictions, including the BLM, U.S. Forest 
Service, National Park Service, State of Colorado, and local government 
and private lands in 37 counties across south-central and eastern 
Colorado. The Browns Canyon National Monument is not part of the 
planning area for this RMP/EIS, as it is the subject of a separate 
plan. The Eastern Colorado RMP will provide management direction for 
approximately 658,200 acres of BLM-administered surface land and 
approximately 3,311,900 acres of BLM-administered mineral estate. The 
decision area includes all BLM public lands and approximately 2,673,000 
acres of split-estate Federal minerals on private, local government, 
and State lands. It does not include National Forest System land and 
other Federal land where the BLM does not make planning decisions about 
oil and gas management and other uses. The BLM typically adopts the 
requirements determined by those Federal surface-managing agencies when 
leasing the associated mineral estate; while such lands are within the 
planning area, they are outside the decision area for this RMP.
    In preparing the Proposed RMP, the BLM evaluated, in detail, a No 
Action Alternative (Alternative A) and three action alternatives 
(Alternatives B, C and D). Alternative A retains the current management 
goals, objectives, and direction specified in the 1986 Northeast RMP 
and the 1996 Royal Gorge RMP. Alternative B emphasizes improving, 
rehabilitating, and restoring resources; sustaining the ecological 
integrity of habitats for all priority plant, wildlife, and fish 
species; and allowing appropriate development scenarios for allowable 
uses (such as mineral leasing, recreation, communication sites, and 
livestock grazing). Alternative C emphasizes a mix of uses that 
maximizes utilization of resources while protecting land health. The 
development scenarios for allowable uses in this alternative emphasize 
maximizing resource production in an environmentally responsible manner 
while maintaining the basic protection needed to sustain resources, 
including mitigating impacts on land health. Alternative D, the 
Proposed RMP, emphasizes balancing resources and resource use among 
competing human interests, land uses, and the conservation of natural 
and cultural resource values, while sustaining and enhancing ecological 
integrity across the landscape, including plant, wildlife, and fish 
habitat. This alternative has four geographic landscapes with distinct 
management, and incorporates a balanced level of protection, 
restoration, and enhancement, as well as the use of resources and 
services to meet ongoing programs and land uses with an emphasis on 
local community visions for the future of public lands.
    Public review of the Eastern Colorado Draft RMP/EIS began on June 
21, 2019. The BLM held seven public open-house meetings across the 
Eastern Colorado Planning Area during the 90-day public comment period. 
Comments on the Draft RMP/EIS were considered and incorporated into the 
final EIS and proposed plan as appropriate. Public and cooperating 
agency comments and further internal BLM review resulted in the 
addition of clarifying text and refinement of Alternative D to include 
backcountry conservation areas, expanded ACEC designations, and the

[[Page 43385]]

closure of areas with low or no fluid mineral potential to oil and gas 
leasing. In the Proposed RMP, the BLM proposes that recreational target 
shooting would generally be allowed on BLM-managed lands in the 
planning area, but to protect the safety of visitors, target shooting 
would continue to be prohibited at certain rock-climbing areas, trail 
networks, campgrounds, and other high-use recreation sites. To protect 
public safety near residences, target shooting would not be allowed on 
small BLM-administered parcels west of Boulder that are interspersed 
with private lands and numerous houses.

Protest of the Proposed RMP

    The BLM planning regulations state that any person who participated 
in the preparation of the RMP and has an interest that will or may be 
adversely affected by approval of the Proposed RMP may protest its 
approval to the BLM Director. Protest on the Proposed RMP constitutes 
the final opportunity for administrative review of the proposed land 
use planning decisions prior to the BLM adopting an approved RMP. 
Instructions for filing a protest regarding the Proposed RMP with the 
BLM Director may be found online at https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/filing-a-plan-protest and at 43 
CFR 1610.5-2. All protests must be in writing and mailed or delivered 
to the appropriate address, as set forth in the ADDRESSES section, or 
submitted electronically through the BLM ePlanning project website as 
described previously. Protests submitted by email or by fax will be 
invalid unless a protest is also submitted as a hard copy. The BLM 
Director will render a written decision on each protest. The Director's 
decision shall be the final decision of the Department of the Interior. 
Responses to protest issues will be compiled and documented in a 
Protest Resolution Report made available following the protest 
resolution online at: https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/protest-resolution-reports. After resolution of 
protests, the BLM will issue a Record of Decision (ROD) and an Approved 
RMP.

Dingell Act Comment on Proposed Target Shooting Closures

    Target shooting closures near residences, certain rock-climbing 
areas, trail networks, campgrounds, and other high-use recreation sites 
are for the safety of residents and the visiting public. To afford the 
BLM the opportunity to consider comments on proposed Penrose Commons, 
Phantom Canyon Road, Shelf Road Recreation Area, Guffey Gorge, 
Methodist Mountain, Turkey Rock, Temple Canyon Road, Garden Park, and 
Boulder County target shooting closures before approval of the ROD/RMP, 
please ensure your comments are received by the DATES listed above. 
Comments may be submitted using the specified methods listed in the 
ADDRESSES section earlier.
    Before including your phone number, email address, or other 
personal identifying information in your protest or comment, you should 
be aware that your entire protest or comment--including your personal 
identifying information--may be made publicly available at any time. 
While you can ask us in your protest or comment 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.)

Douglas J. Vilsack,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2023-14034 Filed 7-6-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-16-P