Establishment of the Gold Butte National Monument, 1149-1155 [2017-00039]

Agencies

• Executive Office of the President

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 3 (Thursday, January 5, 2017)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 1149-1155]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-00039]




                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 3 / Thursday, January 5, 2017 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 1149]]


                Proclamation 9559 of December 28, 2016

                
Establishment of the Gold Butte National Monument

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                In southeast Nevada lies a landscape of contrast and 
                transition, where dramatically chiseled red sandstone, 
                twisting canyons, and tree-clad mountains punctuate 
                flat stretches of the Mojave Desert. This remote and 
                rugged desert landscape is known as Gold Butte.

                The Gold Butte area contains an extraordinary variety 
                of diverse and irreplaceable scientific, historic, and 
                prehistoric resources, including vital plant and 
                wildlife habitat, significant geological formations, 
                rare fossils, important sites from the history of 
                Native Americans, and remnants of our Western mining 
                and ranching heritage. The landscape reveals a story of 
                thousands of years of human interaction with this harsh 
                environment and provides a rare glimpse into the lives 
                of Nevada's first inhabitants, the rich and varied 
                indigenous cultures that followed, and the eventual 
                arrival of Euro-American settlers. Canyons and 
                intricate rock formations are a stunning backdrop to 
                the area's famously beautiful rock art, and the desert 
                provides critical habitat for the threatened Mojave 
                desert tortoise.

                Gold Butte's dynamic environment has provided food and 
                shelter to humans for at least 12,000 years. Remnants 
                of massive agave roasting pits, charred remains of 
                goosefoot and pinyon pine nuts, bone fragments, and 
                projectile points used to hunt big horn sheep and 
                smaller game serve as evidence of the remarkable 
                abilities of indigenous communities to eke out 
                sustenance from this unforgiving landscape. Visitors to 
                Gold Butte can still see ancient rock shelters and 
                hearth remnants concealed in the area's dramatic Aztec 
                Sandstone formations. This brightly hued sandstone is 
                the canvas for the area's spectacular array of rock 
                art, depicting human figures, animals, and swirling 
                abstract designs at locations like the famed Falling 
                Man petroglyph site and Kohta Circus. Pottery sherds 
                and other archaeological artifacts scattered throughout 
                the landscape reveal the area's role as a corridor for 
                the interregional trade of pottery, salt, and rare 
                minerals. These world-renowned archaeological sites and 
                objects are helping scientists to better understand 
                interactions between ancient cultural groups.

                By the time Spanish explorers arrived in the region in 
                the late eighteenth century, the Gold Butte area was 
                home to the Southern Paiute people, who to this day, 
                retain a spiritual and cultural connection with the 
                land and use it for traditional purposes such as 
                ceremonies and plant harvesting. Hunters and settlers 
                of European descent followed the explorers, and, by 
                1865, Mormon pioneers had built settlements in the 
                region.

                These newcomers grazed livestock and explored Gold 
                Butte's unique geology in pursuit of mining riches. 
                Their activities left behind historic sites and objects 
                that tell the story of the American West, including the 
                Gold Butte townsite, a mining boomtown established in 
                the early 1900s, but mostly abandoned by 1910. Several 
                building foundations and arrastas--large flat rocks 
                used for crushing ore--remain at the townsite today. 
                Settlers built corrals out of wood or stone, some of 
                which are still standing in the Gold Butte area, 
                including one near the Gold Butte townsite and one at 
                Horse Springs, along the Gold Butte Scenic Byway. In 
                the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps was put to 
                work in the area, leaving behind a variety

[[Page 1150]]

                of historic features including a dam and remnants of a 
                camp in the Whitney Pockets area, in the northeastern 
                region of Gold Butte.

                The Gold Butte landscape that visitors experience today 
                is the product of millions of years of heat and 
                pressure as well as the eroding forces of water and 
                wind that molded this vast and surreal desert terrain. 
                Rising up from the Virgin River to an elevation of 
                almost 8,000 feet, the Virgin Mountains delineate the 
                area's northeast corner and provide a stunning backdrop 
                for the rugged gray and red desert of the lower 
                elevations. Faulted carbonate and silicate rock form 
                the ridges and peaks of this range, which are regularly 
                snow-covered in winter and spring, while the southern 
                region of Gold Butte is laced with a series of wide 
                granitic ridges and narrow canyons. These broad 
                landscape features are dotted with fantastical geologic 
                formations, including vividly hued Aztec Sandstone 
                twisted into otherworldly shapes by wind and water, as 
                well as pale, desolate granitic domes. An actively-
                expanding 1,200 square-meter sinkhole known as the 
                Devil's Throat has been the subject of multiple 
                scientific studies that have enhanced our understanding 
                of sinkhole formation.

                The Gold Butte landscape is a mosaic of braided and 
                shallow washes that flow into the Virgin River to the 
                north and directly into Lake Mead on the south and 
                west. Several natural springs provide important water 
                sources for the plants and animals living here. The 
                arid eastern Mojave Desert landscape that dominates the 
                area is characterized by the creosote bush and white 
                bursage vegetative community that covers large, open 
                expanses scattered with low shrubs. Blackbrush scrub, a 
                slow-growing species that can live up to 400 years, is 
                abundant in middle elevations. Both creosote-bursage 
                and blackbrush scrub vegetation communities can take 
                decades or even centuries to recover from disturbances 
                due to the long-lived nature of the plant species in 
                these vegetative communities and the area's low 
                rainfall. These vegetation communities are impacted by 
                human uses, invasive species, wildfires, and changing 
                climates. Gypsum deposits are a distinctive aspect of 
                the Mojave Desert ecosystem and result in soil that 
                contains physical and chemical properties that stress 
                many plants, but also support endemic and rare species. 
                For example, the sticky ringstem, Las Vegas buckwheat, 
                and Las Vegas bearpoppy are unique plants that rely on 
                gypsum soil; the populations in Gold Butte are some of 
                only a handful of isolated populations of these species 
                left in the world. Other rare plants in Gold Butte 
                include the threecorner milkvetch and sticky wild 
                buckwheat, which are sand-dependent species, as well as 
                the Rosy two-tone beardtongue and the Mokiak milkvetch. 
                Scattered stands of Joshua trees, an emblem of the 
                Mojave Desert, dot the landscape along with Mojave 
                yucca, cacti species, and chaparral species, among 
                others.

                The often snowcapped peaks of the Virgin Mountains in 
                the northeastern corner of Gold Butte stand in stark 
                contrast to the desolate desert landscapes found 
                elsewhere in the area. Due to their elevation of almost 
                8,000 feet, these mountains exhibit a transition 
                between ecosystems in the southwest. At the highest 
                points of the Virgin Mountains, visitors can hike 
                through Ponderosa pine and white fir forests, and visit 
                the southernmost stand of Douglas fir in Nevada. In 
                this area, visitors are also treated to a rare sight: 
                the Silver State's only stand of the Arizona cypress. 
                The lower to middle elevations of the area are home to 
                stands of pinyon pine, Utah juniper, sagebrush, and 
                acacia woodlands, along with occasional mesquite 
                stands. By adding structural complexity to a shrub-
                dominated landscape, these woodlands provide important 
                breeding, foraging, and resting places for a variety of 
                creatures, including birds and insects, and support a 
                number of plant species.

                Gold Butte also provides habitat for a number of 
                wildlife species. It has been designated as critical 
                habitat for the Mojave desert tortoise, which is listed 
                as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. These 
                slow-footed symbols of the American Southwest rely on 
                the creosote-bursage ecosystem that is widespread here. 
                A generally reclusive reptile, the Mojave desert

[[Page 1151]]

                tortoise uses the protective cover of underground 
                burrows to escape extreme desert conditions and as 
                shelter from predators.

                Other amphibians and reptiles also make their homes in 
                Gold Butte. For example, once considered extinct and 
                now a candidate species for listing under the 
                Endangered Species Act, the relict leopard frog has 
                been released into spring sites in the area in a 
                collaborative effort by local, State, and Federal 
                entities to help revive this still very small 
                population. The banded Gila monster, the only venomous 
                lizard in the United States, has also been recorded in 
                Gold Butte. Many other reptile species--including the 
                banded gecko, California kingsnake, desert iguana, 
                desert night lizard, glossy snake, Great Basin collared 
                lizard, Mojave green rattlesnake, sidewinder, Sonoran 
                lyre snake, southern desert horned lizard, speckled 
                rattlesnake, western leaf-nosed snake, western long-
                nosed snake, and western red-tailed skink--also have 
                populations or potential habitats in the area.

                The Gold Butte area serves as an effective corridor 
                between Lake Mead and the Virgin Mountains for large 
                mammals, including desert bighorn sheep and mountain 
                lions. Smaller mammals in Gold Butte include white-
                tailed antelope squirrel, desert kangaroo rat, and the 
                desert pocket mouse. Several species of bat, including 
                the Pallid bat, Allen's big-eared bat, western 
                pipistrelle bat, and the Brazilian free-tailed bat, are 
                also found here, as well as the northern Mojave blue 
                butterfly.

                Bald and golden eagles, red-tailed and Cooper's hawks, 
                peregrine falcons, and white-throated swifts soar above 
                Gold Butte. Closer to the ground, one can spot a 
                variety of birds, including the western burrowing owl, 
                common poorwill, Costa's hummingbird, pinyon jay, 
                Bendire's thrasher, Virginia's warbler, Lucy's warbler, 
                black-chinned sparrow, and gray vireo. Migratory birds, 
                including the Calliope hummingbird, gray flycatcher, 
                sage sparrow, lesser nighthawk, ash-throated 
                flycatcher, and the Brewer's sparrow, also make stop-
                overs in the area. These birds, and a variety of other 
                avian species, use the diversity of habitats in the 
                area to meet many of their seasonal, migratory, or 
                year-round life cycle needs.

                In addition to providing homes to modern species of 
                plants and wildlife, the area shows great potential for 
                continued paleontological research, with resources such 
                as recently discovered dinosaur tracks dating back to 
                the Jurassic Period. These fossil trackways were found 
                in Gold Butte's distinctive Aztec Sandstone and also 
                include prints from squirrel-sized reptilian ancestors 
                of mammals.

                The protection of the Gold Butte area will preserve its 
                cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy and maintain 
                its diverse array of natural and scientific resources, 
                ensuring that the historic and scientific values of 
                this area, and its many objects of historic and of 
                scientific interest, remain for the benefit of all 
                Americans.

                WHEREAS, section 320301 of title 54, United States Code 
                (known as the ``Antiquities Act''), authorizes the 
                President, in his discretion, to declare by public 
                proclamation historic landmarks, historic and 
                prehistoric structures, and other objects of historic 
                or scientific interest that are situated upon the lands 
                owned or controlled by the Federal Government to be 
                national monuments, and to reserve as a part thereof 
                parcels of land, the limits of which in all cases shall 
                be confined to the smallest area compatible with the 
                proper care and management of the objects to be 
                protected;

                WHEREAS, it is in the public interest to preserve the 
                objects of scientific and historic interest on the Gold 
                Butte lands;

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the 
                United States of America, by the authority vested in me 
                by section 320301 of title 54, United States Code, 
                hereby proclaim the objects identified above that are 
                situated upon lands and interests in lands owned or 
                controlled by the Federal Government to be the Gold 
                Butte National Monument (monument) and, for the purpose 
                of protecting those objects, reserve as part thereof

[[Page 1152]]

                all lands and interests in lands owned or controlled by 
                the Federal Government within the boundaries described 
                on the accompanying map, which is attached to and forms 
                a part of this proclamation. These reserved Federal 
                lands and interests in lands encompass approximately 
                296,937 acres. The boundaries described on the 
                accompanying map are confined to the smallest area 
                compatible with the proper care and management of the 
                objects to be protected.

                All Federal lands and interests in lands within the 
                boundaries of the monument are hereby appropriated and 
                withdrawn from all forms of entry, location, selection, 
                sale, or other disposition under the public land laws, 
                from location, entry, and patent under the mining laws, 
                and from disposition under all laws relating to mineral 
                and geothermal leasing.

                The establishment of the monument is subject to valid 
                existing rights, including valid existing water rights. 
                If the Federal Government subsequently acquires any 
                lands or interests in lands not owned or controlled by 
                the Federal Government within the boundaries described 
                on the accompanying map, such lands and interests in 
                lands shall be reserved as a part of the monument, and 
                objects identified above that are situated upon those 
                lands and interests in lands shall be part of the 
                monument, upon acquisition of ownership or control by 
                the Federal Government.

                The Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) shall manage 
                the monument pursuant to applicable legal authorities, 
                which may include the provisions of section 603 of the 
                Federal Land Policy and Management Act (43 U.S.C. 1782) 
                governing the management of wilderness study areas, to 
                protect the objects identified above. Of the 
                approximately 296,937 acres of Federal lands and 
                interests in lands reserved by this proclamation, 
                approximately 285,158 acres are currently managed by 
                the Secretary through the Bureau of Land Management 
                (BLM) and approximately 11,779 are currently managed by 
                the Secretary through the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR). 
                After issuance of this proclamation, the Secretary 
                shall, consistent with applicable legal authorities, 
                transfer administrative jurisdiction of the BOR lands 
                within the boundaries of the monument to the BLM. The 
                Secretary, through the BLM, shall manage lands within 
                the monument that are subject to the administrative 
                jurisdiction of the BLM as a unit of the National 
                Landscape Conservation System.

                For purposes of protecting and restoring the objects 
                identified above, the Secretary, through the BLM, shall 
                prepare and maintain a management plan for the monument 
                and shall provide for maximum public involvement in the 
                development of that plan including, but not limited to, 
                consultation with State, tribal, and local governments.

                The Secretary shall establish an advisory committee 
                under the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. 
                App., to provide information and advice regarding 
                development of the land use plan and management of the 
                monument.

                Except for emergency or authorized administrative 
                purposes, motorized vehicle use in the monument shall 
                be permitted only on roads designated as open to such 
                use as of the date of this proclamation, unless the 
                Secretary decides to reroute roads for public safety 
                purposes or to enhance protection of the objects 
                identified above. Non-motorized mechanized vehicle use 
                shall be permitted only on roads and trails, consistent 
                with the care and management of the objects identified 
                above.

                Consistent with the care and management of the objects 
                identified above, nothing in this proclamation shall be 
                construed to preclude the renewal or assignment of, or 
                interfere with the operation, maintenance, replacement, 
                modification, or upgrade within the physical 
                authorization boundary of existing flood control, 
                pipeline, and telecommunications facilities, or other 
                water infrastructure, including wildlife water 
                catchments or water district facilities, that are 
                located within the monument. Except as necessary for 
                the care and management of the objects identified 
                above, no new rights-of-way shall be authorized within 
                the monument.

[[Page 1153]]

                Nothing in this proclamation shall be deemed to enlarge 
                or diminish the rights or jurisdiction of any Indian 
                tribe. The Secretary shall, to the maximum extent 
                permitted by law and in consultation with Indian 
                tribes, ensure the protection of Indian sacred sites 
                and traditional cultural properties in the monument and 
                provide for access by members of Indian tribes for 
                traditional cultural and customary uses, consistent 
                with the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (42 
                U.S.C. 1996) and Executive Order 13007 of May 24, 1996 
                (Indian Sacred Sites).

                Livestock grazing has not been permitted in the 
                monument area since 1998 and the Secretary shall not 
                issue any new grazing permits or leases on lands within 
                the monument.

                Nothing in this proclamation shall be deemed to enlarge 
                or diminish the jurisdiction of the State of Nevada, 
                including its jurisdiction and authority with respect 
                to fish and wildlife management, including hunting and 
                fishing.

                Nothing in this proclamation shall be construed to 
                preclude the traditional tribal collection of seeds, 
                natural materials, salt, or materials for stone tools 
                in the monument for personal noncommercial use 
                consistent with the care and management of the objects 
                identified above.

                Nothing in this proclamation shall preclude low-level 
                overflights of military aircraft, the designation of 
                new units of special use airspace, or the use or 
                establishment of military flight training routes over 
                the lands reserved by this proclamation consistent with 
                the care and management of the objects identified 
                above. Nothing in this proclamation shall preclude air 
                or ground access to existing or new electronic tracking 
                communications sites associated with the special use 
                airspace and military training routes, consistent with 
                the care and management of such objects.

                Nothing in this proclamation shall be deemed to revoke 
                any existing withdrawal, reservation, or appropriation; 
                however, the monument shall be the dominant 
                reservation.

                Warning is hereby given to all unauthorized persons not 
                to appropriate, injure, destroy, or remove any feature 
                of the monument and not to locate or settle upon any of 
                the lands thereof.

[[Page 1154]]

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-eighth day of December, in the year of our Lord 
                two thousand sixteen, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                first.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

Billing code 3295-F7-P


[[Page 1155]]

[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TD05JA17.320


[FR Doc. 2017-00039
Filed 1-4-17; 8:45 am]
Billing code 4310-10-C