Notice of Availability for the Eastern Interior Draft Resource Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement, Alaska, 11154-11155 [2012-4039]
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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 37 / Friday, February 24, 2012 / Notices
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLAKF02000.16100000.MR0000.L.X.S.S.
094L0000]
Notice of Availability for the Eastern
Interior Draft Resource Management
Plan/Environmental Impact Statement,
Alaska
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
AGENCY:
In accordance with the
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 as amended, and the Federal Land
Policy and Management Act of 1976, as
amended, the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) has prepared a Draft
Resource Management Plan (RMP) and
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)
for the Eastern Interior Planning Area
(Alaska), and by this notice is
announcing the opening of the comment
period.
DATES: To ensure that comments will be
considered, the BLM must receive
written comments on the Draft RMP/EIS
by July 23, 2012. The BLM will
announce future meetings or hearings
and any other public participation
activities at least 15 days in advance
through public notices, media releases,
and/or mailings.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
related to the Eastern Interior Draft
RMP/EIS by any of the following
methods:
• Web site: https://www.blm.gov/ak/st/
en/prog/planning.html.
• Fax: 907–474–2282.
• Mail: Eastern Interior Field Office,
Attention—Eastern Interior Draft RMP/
EIS, Bureau of Land Management, 1150
University Avenue, Fairbanks, Alaska
99709.
Copies of the Eastern Interior Draft
RMP/EIS are available at the Fairbanks
District Office at the above address; at
SUMMARY:
the Alaska State Office, Public
Information Center, Bureau of Land
Management, 222 West 7th Avenue,
Anchorage, Alaska 99513; and on the
following Web site: https://www.blm.gov/
ak/st/en/prog/planning.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Jeanie Cole, telephone 907–474–2340 or
email j05cole@blm.gov. Persons who use
a telecommunications device for the
deaf (TDD) may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at
1–800–877–8339 to contact the above
individual during normal business
hours. The FIRS is available 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week, to leave a message
or question with the above individual.
You will receive a reply during normal
business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Eastern Interior Draft RMP/EIS covers
approximately 6.7 million acres of BLMadministered lands in interior Alaska
and is divided into four geographic
areas: The Fortymile, Steese, Upper
Black River, and White Mountains
subunits. The planning area
encompasses four areas managed under
the BLM’s National Landscape
Conservation System (NLCS): The Birch
Creek, Beaver Creek, and Fortymile
National Wild and Scenic Rivers; and
the Steese National Conservation Area.
In addition to these NLCS areas, the
planning area includes the White
Mountains National Recreation Area.
These five areas were designated and
are covered by special provisions in the
Alaska National Interest Lands
Conservation Act of 1980, as amended
(ANILCA).
The following BLM plans currently
guide management decisions for 4.2
million acres in the planning area:
Fortymile Management Framework Plan
(1980), Fortymile River Management
Plan (1983), Birch Creek River
Management Plan (1983), Beaver Creek
River Management Plan (1983), Record
of Decision and RMP for the Steese
National Conservation Area (1986), and
Record of Decision and RMP for the
White Mountains National Recreation
Area (1986). The remaining 2.5 million
acres are not covered by any land use
plans.
The BLM published a Notice of Intent
to prepare an RMP/EIS in the Federal
Register on February 29, 2008 (73 FR
11140), beginning a 120-day scoping
and public comment period. The
following issues were identified during
scoping: Climate change, fisheries,
minerals, recreation, rights-of-way,
subsistence, travel management, water
quality, lands with wilderness
characteristics, and wildlife.
The Draft RMP/EIS presents four
alternatives, including the No Action
Alternative. The BLM’s preferred
alternative (Alternative C) proposes a
balanced level of protection, use, and
enhancement of resources and services,
and represents the mix and variety of
actions that the BLM believes best
resolves the issues and management
concerns in consideration of all resource
values and programs.
Pursuant to 43 CFR 1610.7–2, areas
with potential for designation as Areas
of Critical Environmental Concern
(ACEC) and protective management are
considered during the planning process.
Four potential ACECs are considered for
designation in Draft RMP/EIS.
Boundaries, size, and management
direction within potential ACECs vary
by Alternative. Table 1 lists the three
ACECs considered for designation in the
Agency Preferred Alternative
(Alternative C). The White Mountains
ACEC is not considered for designation
in Alternative C, but is considered for
designation in one other alternative. All
alternatives will retain the four existing
Research Natural Areas.
The following table includes the
names and acreages of each proposed
ACEC and provides summary
descriptions of resource use limitations
for Alternative C.
TABLE 1—PROPOSED NEW ACECS UNDER THE AGENCY PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE, ALTERNATIVE C
Proposed ACEC name
Acres
Limitations
547,000
Steese ACEC .....................
srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Fortymile ACEC ..................
460,000
Salmon Fork ACEC ............
621,000
Pursuant to section 810 of ANILCA,
the BLM evaluated the effects of the
alternatives presented in this Draft
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:34 Feb 23, 2012
Jkt 226001
Limited Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) designation; seasonal limitation on uses within one mile of
ungulate mineral licks; 360,000 acres of core caribou habitat closed to locatable mineral entry
and mineral leasing.
Limited OHV designation; winter motorized use in Dall sheep habitat may be restricted if monitoring indicates sheep displacement; development of trails and recreational facilities must be
compatible with caribou and Dall sheep habitat; seasonal limitation on uses within one mile of
ungulate mineral licks; closed to locatable mineral entry and mineral leasing.
Limited OHV designation; closed to mineral leasing.
RMP/EIS on subsistence activities and
determined that some decisions in the
Draft RMP/EIS may significantly restrict
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
subsistence uses. The BLM will hold
public hearings related to Section 810 of
ANILCA, in conjunction with public
E:\FR\FM\24FEN1.SGM
24FEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 37 / Friday, February 24, 2012 / Notices
meetings on the Draft RMP/EIS, in
potentially affected regions. The BLM
will announce notice of specific dates
and locations for ANILCA hearings at
least 15 days in advance, through public
notices, media releases, and/or mailings.
Please note that public comments and
information submitted including names,
street addresses, and email addresses of
persons who submit comments will be
available for public review and
disclosure at the above address during
regular business hours (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.),
Monday through Friday, except
holidays.
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.
(TDD) may call the Federal Information
Relay Service (FIRS) at (800) 877–8339
to contact the above individual during
normal business hours. The FIRS is
available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
to leave a message or question with the
above individual. You will receive a
reply during normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The lessee
has agreed to the amended lease terms
for rentals and royalties at rates of $5
per acre or fraction thereof, per year and
162⁄3 percent, respectively. The lessee
has paid the required $500
administrative fee and $163 to
reimburse the Department for the cost of
this Federal Register notice. The lessee
has met all the requirements for
reinstatement of the lease as set out in
Section 31(d) and (e) of the Mineral
Lands Leasing Act of 1920 (30 U.S.C.
188), and the BLM is proposing to
reinstate lease COC73670 effective
December 1, 2010, under the original
terms and conditions of the lease and
the increased rental and royalty rates
cited above.
Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 1506.10, and 43
CFR 1610.2
Steven Hall,
Acting State Director.
Bud Cribley,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2012–4322 Filed 2–23–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–JB–P
[FR Doc. 2012–4039 Filed 2–23–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310–JA–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Reclamation
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Notice of Intent To Prepare an
Environmental Impact Statement on
the Pojoaque Basin Regional Water
System, Santa Fe County, NM
Bureau of Land Management
[LLCO922000–L13100000–FI0000;
COC73670]
Bureau of Reclamation,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
Notice of Proposed Reinstatement of
Terminated Oil and Gas Lease
COC73670
AGENCY:
Bureau of Land Management,
Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Proposed
Reinstatement of Terminated Oil and
Gas Lease.
SUMMARY:
AGENCY:
Under the provisions of 30
U.S.C. 188(d) and (e), and 43 CFR
3108.2–3(a) and (b)(1), the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) received a
petition for reinstatement of oil and gas
lease COC73670 from Hannon &
Associates Inc., for lands in Huerfano
County, Colorado. The petition was
filed on time and was accompanied by
all the rentals due since the date the
lease terminated under the law.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Milada Krasilinec, BLM Land Law
Examiner, Fluid Minerals Adjudication,
at (303) 239–3767.
Persons who use a
telecommunications device for the deaf
srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
18:34 Feb 23, 2012
Jkt 226001
The Bureau of Reclamation
(Reclamation) intends to prepare an
environmental impact statement (EIS)
on the Pojoaque Basin Regional Water
System. Reclamation will serve as the
lead Federal agency. The U.S. Army
Corp of Engineers, Bureau of Indian
Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
New Mexico Interstate Stream
Commission, New Mexico Office of the
State Engineer, County of Santa Fe, and
´
the Pueblos of Nambe, Pojoaque, San
Ildefonso, and Tesuque will be invited
to participate as cooperating agencies
for the EIS. Other entities will be
considered as necessary during the EIS
process.
The proposed Pojoaque Basin
Regional Water System will divert, treat,
and distribute potable water to the
Pueblo and non-Pueblo residents of the
Pojoaque Basin. The Regional Water
System will consist of surface water
PO 00000
Frm 00093
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
11155
diversion and water treatment facilities
at San Ildefonso Pueblo on the Rio
Grande and storage tanks, transmission
and distribution pipelines, and aquifer
storage and recovery well fields that
will supply up to 4,000 acre-feet of
water annually to customers within the
Pojoaque Basin.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information and/or to have your
name added to the mailing list, please
contact Marsha Carra, Bureau of
Reclamation, Albuquerque Area Office,
555 Broadway NE., Suite 100,
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102;
telephone (505) 462–3602; facsimile
(505) 462–3780; email mcarra@usbr.gov.
Persons who use a telecommunications
device for the deaf may call the Federal
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1–
800–877–8339 to contact the above
individual during normal business
hours. The FIRS is available 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week, to leave a message
or question with the above individual.
You will receive a reply during normal
business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
Federal Register notice provides the
public with information regarding
Reclamation’s intent to prepare an EIS
pursuant to the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended.
The Pojoaque Basin Regional Water
System is described in and authorized
by the Aamodt Litigation Settlement Act
(Settlement Act) which is Title VI of the
Claims Resolution Act of 2010 (Pub. L.
111–291, Title VI; 124 Stat. 3065). The
Settlement Act authorizes
implementation of a Settlement
Agreement among the United States, the
State of New Mexico, the County of
Santa Fe, the City of Santa Fe, the four
Pueblos, and other non-Pueblo parties,
and allows for the annual diversion of
up to 4,000 acre-feet of water per year
and the construction of the Pojoaque
Basin Regional Water System to treat
and distribute the water to residents of
the Pojoaque Basin. The Settlement
Agreement provides for settlement of
´
water rights claims of the Nambe,
Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque
Pueblos in the Pojoaque Basin.
As described in the Settlement Act,
Congress is requiring compliance with
relevant laws protecting the
environment, including but not limited
to NEPA and the Endangered Species
Act of 1973. Pursuant to NEPA,
Reclamation is preparing an EIS that
will describe the existing environment
and environmental impacts of the
proposed Pojoaque Basin Regional
Water System.
Public scoping meetings will be held
to solicit comments on the scope of the
E:\FR\FM\24FEN1.SGM
24FEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 37 (Friday, February 24, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11154-11155]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-4039]
[[Page 11154]]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[LLAKF02000.16100000.MR0000.L.X.S.S.094L0000]
Notice of Availability for the Eastern Interior Draft Resource
Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement, Alaska
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of Availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of
1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a
Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS) for the Eastern Interior Planning Area (Alaska), and by this
notice is announcing the opening of the comment period.
DATES: To ensure that comments will be considered, the BLM must receive
written comments on the Draft RMP/EIS by July 23, 2012. The BLM will
announce future meetings or hearings and any other public participation
activities at least 15 days in advance through public notices, media
releases, and/or mailings.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments related to the Eastern Interior
Draft RMP/EIS by any of the following methods:
Web site: https://www.blm.gov/ak/st/en/prog/planning.html.
Fax: 907-474-2282.
Mail: Eastern Interior Field Office, Attention--Eastern
Interior Draft RMP/EIS, Bureau of Land Management, 1150 University
Avenue, Fairbanks, Alaska 99709.
Copies of the Eastern Interior Draft RMP/EIS are available at the
Fairbanks District Office at the above address; at the Alaska State
Office, Public Information Center, Bureau of Land Management, 222 West
7th Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska 99513; and on the following Web site:
https://www.blm.gov/ak/st/en/prog/planning.html.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeanie Cole, telephone 907-474-2340 or
email j05cole@blm.gov. Persons who use a telecommunications device for
the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at
1-800-877-8339 to contact the above individual during normal business
hours. The FIRS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a
message or question with the above individual. You will receive a reply
during normal business hours.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Eastern Interior Draft RMP/EIS covers
approximately 6.7 million acres of BLM-administered lands in interior
Alaska and is divided into four geographic areas: The Fortymile,
Steese, Upper Black River, and White Mountains subunits. The planning
area encompasses four areas managed under the BLM's National Landscape
Conservation System (NLCS): The Birch Creek, Beaver Creek, and
Fortymile National Wild and Scenic Rivers; and the Steese National
Conservation Area. In addition to these NLCS areas, the planning area
includes the White Mountains National Recreation Area. These five areas
were designated and are covered by special provisions in the Alaska
National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980, as amended (ANILCA).
The following BLM plans currently guide management decisions for
4.2 million acres in the planning area: Fortymile Management Framework
Plan (1980), Fortymile River Management Plan (1983), Birch Creek River
Management Plan (1983), Beaver Creek River Management Plan (1983),
Record of Decision and RMP for the Steese National Conservation Area
(1986), and Record of Decision and RMP for the White Mountains National
Recreation Area (1986). The remaining 2.5 million acres are not covered
by any land use plans.
The BLM published a Notice of Intent to prepare an RMP/EIS in the
Federal Register on February 29, 2008 (73 FR 11140), beginning a 120-
day scoping and public comment period. The following issues were
identified during scoping: Climate change, fisheries, minerals,
recreation, rights-of-way, subsistence, travel management, water
quality, lands with wilderness characteristics, and wildlife.
The Draft RMP/EIS presents four alternatives, including the No
Action Alternative. The BLM's preferred alternative (Alternative C)
proposes a balanced level of protection, use, and enhancement of
resources and services, and represents the mix and variety of actions
that the BLM believes best resolves the issues and management concerns
in consideration of all resource values and programs.
Pursuant to 43 CFR 1610.7-2, areas with potential for designation
as Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) and protective
management are considered during the planning process. Four potential
ACECs are considered for designation in Draft RMP/EIS. Boundaries,
size, and management direction within potential ACECs vary by
Alternative. Table 1 lists the three ACECs considered for designation
in the Agency Preferred Alternative (Alternative C). The White
Mountains ACEC is not considered for designation in Alternative C, but
is considered for designation in one other alternative. All
alternatives will retain the four existing Research Natural Areas.
The following table includes the names and acreages of each
proposed ACEC and provides summary descriptions of resource use
limitations for Alternative C.
Table 1--Proposed New ACECs Under the Agency Preferred Alternative,
Alternative C
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Proposed ACEC name Acres Limitations
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fortymile ACEC...................... 547,000 Limited Off-
Highway Vehicle
(OHV)
designation;
seasonal
limitation on
uses within one
mile of ungulate
mineral licks;
360,000 acres of
core caribou
habitat closed to
locatable mineral
entry and mineral
leasing.
Steese ACEC......................... 460,000 Limited OHV
designation;
winter motorized
use in Dall sheep
habitat may be
restricted if
monitoring
indicates sheep
displacement;
development of
trails and
recreational
facilities must
be compatible
with caribou and
Dall sheep
habitat; seasonal
limitation on
uses within one
mile of ungulate
mineral licks;
closed to
locatable mineral
entry and mineral
leasing.
Salmon Fork ACEC.................... 621,000 Limited OHV
designation;
closed to mineral
leasing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pursuant to section 810 of ANILCA, the BLM evaluated the effects of
the alternatives presented in this Draft RMP/EIS on subsistence
activities and determined that some decisions in the Draft RMP/EIS may
significantly restrict subsistence uses. The BLM will hold public
hearings related to Section 810 of ANILCA, in conjunction with public
[[Page 11155]]
meetings on the Draft RMP/EIS, in potentially affected regions. The BLM
will announce notice of specific dates and locations for ANILCA
hearings at least 15 days in advance, through public notices, media
releases, and/or mailings.
Please note that public comments and information submitted
including names, street addresses, and email addresses of persons who
submit comments will be available for public review and disclosure at
the above address during regular business hours (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.),
Monday through Friday, except holidays.
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.
Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 1506.10, and 43 CFR 1610.2
Bud Cribley,
State Director.
[FR Doc. 2012-4039 Filed 2-23-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-JA-P
