[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 104 (Tuesday, June 1, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30426-30427]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-12969]
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DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WY-930-1610-DR]
Notice of Availability of Record of Decision for the Kemmerer
Resource Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announces the availability
of the Record of Decision (ROD)/Approved Resource Management Plan (RMP)
for the Kemmerer Field Office planning area located in Lincoln,
Sweetwater, and Uinta counties, Wyoming. The Wyoming State Director
signed the ROD on May 24, 2010, which constitutes the final decision of
the BLM and makes the Approved RMP effective immediately.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the ROD/Approved RMP are available upon request
from the Field Manager, Kemmerer Field Office, Bureau of Land
Management, 312 Highway 189 North, Kemmerer, Wyoming 83101; from the
Wyoming State Office, Bureau of Land Management, 5353 Yellowstone Road,
Cheyenne, Wyoming 82003; or via the Internet at: http://www.blm.gov/rmp/kemmerer/docs.htm. Copies of the ROD/Approved RMP are available for
public inspection at the addresses listed above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information, contact John
Christensen, Kemmerer Field Manager, or Michele Easley, Kemmerer
Assistant Field Manager and RMP team leader, at the Kemmerer Field
Office, 312 Highway 189 North, Kemmerer, Wyoming 83101; telephone at
(307) 828-4500; or e-mail John_Christensen@blm.gov and Michelle_Easley@blm.gov, respectively.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The approved Kemmerer RMP was revised
collaboratively with the State of Wyoming, county governments, other
Federal agencies, and tribal governments. The Kemmerer RMP planning
area includes approximately 1.4 million acres of BLM-administered
public lands and 1.6 million acres of Federal mineral lands under
Federal, state, and private surface ownership.
The Approved RMP establishes the goals, objectives, and management
actions to meet desired resource conditions; identifies comprehensive
management direction for all resources and uses; identifies lands that
are open or available for certain uses along with associated surface
restrictions; and identifies lands closed to certain uses. The Approved
RMP makes broad-scale decisions to guide future site-specific project
implementation for wind energy, fluid minerals, and coal resource
development in the Kemmerer planning area. The agency preferred
alternative (Alternative D, in the Proposed RMP/Final Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS), with modifications) is the selected alternative
for the Approved RMP.
After the publication of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS on August 22,
2008, the BLM received 10 protest letters. As a result of these
protests, the BLM made modifications to the proposed plan that are
reflected in the Approved RMP. The BLM eliminated Christy Canyon as a
forage reserve allotment since a lack of available water and a short
growing season preclude full-season emergency relief for livestock
operations. The BLM also made other minor editorial modifications in
preparing the Approved RMP. These modifications provided further
clarification of some of the decisions.
In addition, the BLM received protests asserting that the public
was not provided adequate opportunity to comment on expanded sage-
grouse restrictions in the Proposed RMP/Final EIS. To resolve the
issues raised in these protests, the Approved RMP adopts the sage-
grouse restrictions originally presented in the Draft RMP/EIS (and
reflected in the no action alternative in the Proposed RMP/Final EIS).
The BLM Wyoming State Office, however, is also initiating the process
to amend the Kemmerer, Casper, Pinedale, Rock Springs, Newcastle, and
Rawlins RMPs. These RMP amendments will revise sage-grouse and
sagebrush management direction to incorporate policies set forth in BLM
Wyoming Instruction Memoranda (IM) WY-2010-012 and WY-2010-013. The IMs
may be accessed at the following Web address: http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/programs.wildlife.html.
To ensure appropriate management of sage-grouse habitat during the
amendment process (and associated NEPA analysis), the BLM will
undertake the following actions:
1. The BLM will apply the direction provided in IM WY-2010-012 and
IM WY-2010-013 to specific projects, as appropriate, on a case-by-case
basis.
[[Page 30427]]
2. As the BLM considers implementing decisions governed by the
Approved Kemmerer RMP, the BLM will coordinate with Federal, state, and
local agencies to ensure that the policies established by the Governor
of Wyoming's Executive Order on Sage-Grouse (E.O. 2008-2), including
managing sage-grouse habitats in support of population objectives
consistent with the Governor's Sage-Grouse Core Population Area
strategy, are considered and implemented, as appropriate.
3. The BLM will apply expanded sage-grouse restrictions when
supported by site-specific environmental analysis.
4. The BLM will make use of statewide sage-grouse seasonal habitat
models and sagebrush mapping as they are developed.
5. The BLM will provide for additional sage-grouse protections
through a statewide oil and gas lease stipulation--Lease Notice No.3:
``Greater Sage-Grouse Habitat: The lease may in part, or in total,
contain important Greater sage-grouse habitats as identified by the
BLM, either currently or prospectively. The operator may be required to
implement specific measures to reduce impacts of oil and gas operations
on the Greater sage-grouse populations and habitat quality. Such
measures shall be developed during the Application for Permit to Drill
(APD) on-site and environmental review process and will be consistent
with the lease rights granted.''
The Governor's consistency review of the Proposed RMP/Final EIS
identified a concern which prompted the BLM to clarify the definition
of surface-disturbing activity to maintain consistency with other BLM
Wyoming Field Offices.
The decisions identifying designated routes of travel and closures
for motorized vehicles are implementation decisions and are appealable
under 43 CFR part 4. These decisions are contained in Table 1-1 of the
Approved RMP. Any party adversely affected by the proposed route
identifications may appeal within 30 days of publication of this Notice
of Availability pursuant to 43 CFR, part 4, subpart E. The appeal
should state the specific route(s), as identified in Table 1-1 of the
Approved RMP, on which the decision is being appealed. The appeal must
be filed with the Kemmerer Field Manager at the above listed address.
Please consult the appropriate regulations (43 CFR, part 4, subpart E)
for further appeal requirements.
Donald A. Simpson
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2010-12969 Filed 5-28-10; 8:45 am]
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