[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 245 (Thursday, December 22, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-31460]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: December 22, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[WY-010-1610-00]
Environmental Statements; Availability, etc.: Grass Creek
Resource Area, WY
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Availability of the Draft Environmental Impact
Statement for the Grass Creek Resource Management Plan for public
review and comment.
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SUMMARY: The draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Grass
Creek Resource Management Plan (RMP) describes and analyzes four
alternative resource management plans, including the Bureau of Land
Management's (BLM's) preferred alternative, developed through public
scoping and in consultation with local Governments. The planning area
includes portions of Big Horn, Hot Springs, Park, and Washakie counties
in the Bighorn Basin of north central Wyoming. When completed, the
Grass Creek RMP will provide the management direction for future land
and resource management actions on approximately 968,000 acres of
public land surface and approximately 1,171,000 acres of Federal
mineral estate administered by the BLM.
The draft EIS focuses on resolving three key issues identified
through public scoping and analysis of current BLM management in the
Grass Creek planning area. These issues are:
1. Vegetation management
2. Special management area designations
3. Public land and resource accessibility and manageability
The proposed designation of three Areas of Critical Environmental
Concern (ACECs) is addressed in the draft EIS. These are the
Fifteenmile Creek Watershed proposed ACEC (274,300 acres), the
Meeteetse Draw proposed ACEC (6,800 acres), and the Upper Owl Creek
proposed ACEC (17,100 acres).
Management of the Fifteenmile Creek Watershed proposed ACEC would
emphasize a cooperative approach to improving riparian and upland
areas, and reducing the amount of sediment delivered to the Bighorn
River. State and local Government, private landowners, grazing
permittees, and other interested parties would collaborate in managing
the area.
The Meeteetse Draw proposed ACEC would highlight the importance of
Native American cultural values associated with this area. The primary
emphasis of BLM's management would be to improve public education,
interpretation, scientific research, and protection of Native American
cultural values. Controlled management of this area would also allow
Native Americans to have access to these sites for ritual purposes and
aid in preserving aspects of their heritage.
The Upper Owl Creek proposed ACEC would be managed to maintain
important wildlife habitat, protect rare plants, maintain scenic
quality, enhance recreation, and reduce erosion and natural hazards
associated with the area's landslide potential.
These proposed ACEC designations would highlight the three areas
for management and funding, but would not increase the level of
restrictions on land uses above that which would otherwise be
appropriate for management. The special management designations also
would not apply to State or private lands.
In accordance with the provisions of 38 CFR Part 800, parties who
are interested in and who wish to be involved in future activity
planning and implementation of management actions that may involve or
affect the archaeological and historical resources addressed in the
proposed plan, are requested to identify themselves. Through contacting
the Worland District Office at the below address, you will be placed on
a future contact list.
The coal screening process (including application of the coal
unsuitability criteria under 43 CFR Part 3461) was not conducted for
the planning effort. Any interest in coal exploration or leasing will
be handled on a case-by-case basis. If an application for a coal lease
is received sometime in the future, an appropriate land use
environmental analysis will be conducted (which will include conducting
the coal screening process) to determine whether or not the coal areas
applied for are acceptable for development and leasing consideration.
The RMP will be amended as necessary.
In the course of conducting the planning effort and preparing the
Grass Creek RMP EIS, public lands along all waterways in the planning
area were reviewed to determine their eligibility for inclusion in the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. No public lands were found to
meet the eligibility criteria.
The draft EIS contains socio-economic information on the
population, employment, and income of the planning area and describes
the impacts on the local economy of implementing each of the four
alternatives analyzed in the EIS.
Wilderness management and recommendations on wilderness designation
have been considered in previous documents and are not addressed in
this draft EIS.
DATES: Written comments will be accepted for 90 days following the date
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) publishes the filing of the
draft EIS for the Grass Creek RMP in the Federal Register. This filing
notice is expected to be published about mid or late December 1994.
Open houses will be held in communities within the planning area to
provide opportunities for the public to meet with the BLM and comment
on the draft EIS. These open houses will be held during January 1995.
Media releases will provide information on the locations and times of
the meetings when these are determined.
ADDRESSES: Copies of the draft EIS for the Grass Creek Resource
Management Plan are available from the BLM Worland District Office and
the Grass Creek Resource Area Office at P. O. Box 119, 101 South 23rd
Street, Worland, Wyoming 82401-0119. Comments and requests to be placed
on the Grass Creek RMP mailing list should be sent to Bob Ross, RMP
Team Leader, P. O. Box 119, Worland, Wyoming 82401-0119.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joseph T. Vessels, Grass Creek
Resource Area Manager or Bob Ross, RMP Team Leader at the above address
or by telephone (307) 347-9871.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Grass Creek Resource Area is responsible
for managing the BLM-administered public lands in portions of Big Horn,
Hot Springs, Park, and Washakie counties in Wyoming. Within the Grass
Creek RMP planning area there are varied and intermingled land surface
ownerships and overlapping mineral ownerships. Therefore, the
administrative jurisdictions for land use planning and for managing the
land surface and minerals are also varied, intermingled, and sometimes
overlapping. For this reason, it is important to understand that the
draft EIS does not address management of lands (about 302,000 acres) or
minerals (about 8,000 acres) within the planning area that are
privately-owned or owned by the State of Wyoming or local Governments.
It also does not address those Federally-owned minerals within the
planning area that are under Federal land surface managed by other
agencies (about 4,700 acres).
The draft EIS for the Grass Creek RMP presents four alternative,
multiple use resource management plans for managing the BLM-
administered public lands in the planning area. Alternative A
(continuation of current management) and three other alternatives that
suggest different combinations and emphases for managing the various
resource and land uses on the BLM-administered public lands, on the
basis of needs, opportunities, and public demand. The four alternative
plans focus on allocating public lands and resources among their valid
uses and prescribing general management actions that would be taken.
The preferred alternative is a combination of parts of alternatives A,
B, and C and represents what BLM believes is the best balance between
the public lands and resource uses and environmental protection in the
planning area. The various impacts that would be expected from
implementing each of the alternatives is also presented in the draft
EIS.
Dated: December 5, 1994.
Alan L. Kesterke,
Associate State Director.
[FR Doc. 94-31460 Filed 12-21-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-22-P