Notice of Intent To Amend the Taos Resource Management Plan and Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Recreational Shooting Range Project on Public Lands in Santa Fe County, 52413-52415 [2022-18328]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• Bureau of Land Management

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 164 (Thursday, August 25, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52413-52415]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-18328]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLNMF02000.L16100000.DP0000.223L1109AF]


Notice of Intent To Amend the Taos Resource Management Plan and 
Prepare an Environmental Assessment for the Proposed Recreational 
Shooting Range Project on Public Lands in Santa Fe County

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent.

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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 (FLPMA), as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) New 
Mexico State Director intends to prepare a resource management plan 
(plan) amendment with an associated environmental assessment (EA) to 
propose the development of up to three recreational shooting ranges and 
closure of certain areas to recreational shooting. This notice is 
announcing the beginning of the scoping period to solicit public 
comments and identify issues, provides the planning criteria for public 
review, and announces the comment period on the BLM's proposed target 
shooting closures.

DATES: The BLM requests comments concerning the scope of the analysis, 
potential alternatives, planning criteria, and identification of 
relevant information or studies by October 24, 2022. To afford the BLM 
the opportunity to consider issues raised by commenters in the draft 
plan amendment/analysis, please ensure your comments are received prior 
to the close of the 60-day scoping period or 15 days after the last 
public meeting, whichever is later. Public scoping meetings will be 
held during the scoping period. The dates, times, and locations of the 
public meetings will be announced at least 15 days in advance.
    In addition, this notice also announces the opening of a 60-day 
comment period for proposed target shooting closures. The BLM must 
receive your target shooting related comments by October 24, 2022. The 
BLM will provide additional opportunities for public participation as 
appropriate.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on issues related to the 
Recreational Shooting Range Project, including the plan amendment and 
proposed closures, by any of the following methods:


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 Website: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2013605/510
 Mail: Bureau of Land Management, Attention: Brad Higdon, 1024 
Paseo del Pueblo Sur, Taos, NM 87571

    Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the Taos 
Field Office, 1024 Paseo del Pueblo Sur in Taos, New Mexico.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brad Higdon, Planning and 
Environmental Specialist, telephone (575) 751-4725; address 1024 Paseo 
del Pueblo Sur, Taos, NM 87571; email [email protected]. Contact Mr. 
Higdon to have your name added to our mailing list. 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. 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 closure of certain areas within Santa Fe 
County, New Mexico, would be conducted in compliance with the John D. 
Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act of 2019 
(Dingell Act), 16 U.S.C. 7913.
    This document provides notice that the BLM New Mexico State 
Director intends to amend the 2012 Taos Resource Management Plan with 
an associated EA proposing to develop recreational shooting ranges and 
close unsafe areas along roads to target shooting, thus beginning the 
scoping process. Additionally, this notice seeks public input on issues 
and planning criteria that are subject to the plan amendment and seeks 
comments on proposed target shooting closures. The plan amendment will 
allow the BLM to address public safety issues and evaluate providing 
safe, controlled target shooting opportunities on public lands. The 
planning area is located in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, and 
encompasses approximately 38,000 acres of public land. While the 
planning area includes lands designated within the Santa Fe Ranch and 
La Cienega Areas of Critical Environmental Concern, the scope of this 
land use plan amendment does not include evaluation or designation of 
special management areas, including areas of critical environmental 
concern. The BLM is not considering nominations for areas of critical 
environmental concern as part of this process.

Purpose and Need

    The purpose of the proposed action is to provide safe, controlled 
opportunities for recreational shooting on BLM-managed lands in Santa 
Fe County, away from residential areas, and in a manner that minimizes 
impacts to other resources and public land users. The action is needed 
to address conflicts associated with the concentration of unmanaged 
target shooting activities near residential areas. Unconfined target 
shooting activities in three urban-interface areas--Buckman, Camel 
Tracks, and San Pedro Mountains--are causing public safety concerns, 
degradation of natural and cultural resources, waste accumulation, 
threat of wildfire, and noise disturbances inconsistent with the BLM's 
responsibilities under FLPMA section 102(a)(8). Residents in 
neighboring areas have repeatedly expressed concerns regarding the safe 
enjoyment of their private properties, the threat of wildfire ignitions 
from shooting-related activities, and disruptive noise. Most 
importantly, when more than one shooting party is present, the lack of 
controls in these areas pose safety risks to other recreationalists, 
livestock grazing permittees, and other public land users. These 
impacts persist despite repeated efforts by the BLM to remove trash and 
lead contaminants, mitigate fuelwood loads around undeveloped shooting 
locations, and public education efforts. The lack of public shooting 
ranges in Santa Fe County has led to the three areas on BLM-managed 
lands to becoming de facto shooting destinations.

Preliminary Alternatives

    The BLM is proposing to develop up to three recreational shooting 
ranges, remediate currently used undeveloped shooting locations, and 
close certain areas of public lands to recreational target shooting. 
These recreational shooting closures require an amendment to the Taos 
Resource Management Plan (RMP). The agency is proposing the plan 
amendment to identify and specify areas closed to recreational 
shooting. In the Buckman and San Pedro Mountain areas, the proposed 
closures would be new land use allocations limiting shooting sports to 
only hunting activities, while the closure in the Camel Tracks area 
would expand a shooting closure currently implemented under the Taos 
RMP. The BLM may also consider limiting recreational and other uses 
downrange of the proposed shooting ranges as additional safety 
precautions.
    The BLM proposes to apply permanent shooting closures to the 
following three areas:
    Buckman: The potential closure would apply to approximately 13,622 
acres of the 21,115 acres of BLM-managed public lands. The area 
proposed for closure to recreational shooting in Buckman, which 
encompasses the Santa Fe Ranch ACEC, would include public lands within 
the following:

T. 19 N., R. 8 E., NMPM
    Sec. 31.
T. 18 E., R. 7 E., NMPM
    Secs. 1 and 12.
T. 18 E., R. 8 E., NMPM
    Secs. 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 
25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 33, 34, and 35.
T. 17 N., R. 8 E., NMPM
    Secs. 3, 4, 9, 10, 15, and 22.

    Camel Tracks: The potential closure would apply to approximately 
7,260 acres of the 14,259 acres of BLM-managed public lands. Public 
lands proposed for closure to recreational shooting in Camel Tracks, 
which encompasses La Cienega Area of Critical Environmental Concern, 
include lands within the following:

T. 16 N., R. 7 E., NMPM
    Secs. 1, 10, 11. 12, 13, 14, 15, 22, 23, 24, 26, and 27.
T. 16 N., 8 E., NMPM
    Secs. 7, 8, 18, and 19.

    San Pedro Mountains: The potential closure would apply to 
approximately 827 acres of the 2,565 acres of BLM managed lands. Public 
lands proposed for closure to recreational target shooting in this area 
include lands within the following:

T. 12 N., R. 7 E., NMPM
    Secs. 17, 20, 21, 22, 27, 28, 29, and 32.

    The BLM welcomes comments on this preliminary alternative as well 
as suggestions for additional alternatives.

Planning Criteria

    Planning criteria guide the planning effort and lay the groundwork 
for effects analysis by identifying the preliminary issues and their 
analytical frameworks. Preliminary issues for the planning area have 
been identified by the BLM interdisciplinary team and from early 
engagement conducted for this planning effort with federal, state, and 
local agencies; Tribes; and stakeholders.
    Preliminary issues identified for the proposed shooting range 
development and associated closures include the following: public 
safety, recreational opportunities, noise, and potential impacts to 
soils, biological resources, and cultural resources, including 
traditional cultural properties. The

[[Page 52415]]

preliminary planning criteria for the plan amendment includes the 
following: (1) the scope of the plan amendment is limited to 
prohibiting a single use (recreational target shooting) on certain 
portions of public lands; (2) the plan amendment will carefully weigh 
the benefits of enhanced opportunities for recreational shooting at 
developed ranges against the adverse effects of the recreational 
shooting opportunities foregone by the proposed shooting closures in 
the three areas; (3) the closure to a public land use will be applied 
to the smallest area necessary to provide for public safety, 
sustainable resource management, and the protection of important 
resource values, consistent with the Dingell Act of 2019; (4) the 
prohibited use will only apply to recreational target shooting and any 
discharge of firearms for purposes other than active, lawful hunting on 
the public lands identified above; (5) the amendment will comply with 
FLPMA, NEPA, and all other applicable laws, regulations, Executive and 
Secretarial Orders, and policies; (6) the amendment will incorporate 
all other management decisions brought forward from the Taos Resource 
Management Plan, approved in May 2012; (7) broad-based public 
participation and collaboration will be an integral part of the 
planning process; (8) the planning process will provide for ongoing 
consultation with Native American tribal governments and strategies for 
protecting traditional cultural properties; and (9) the BLM will work 
collaboratively with cooperating agencies and all other interested 
groups, agencies, and individuals.

Public Scoping Process

    This notice of intent initiates the scoping period and public 
review of the planning criteria, which guide the development and 
analysis of the RMP amendment and EA.
    The BLM will hold two in-person meetings in Santa Fe and one 
virtual meeting online. The specific dates and location(s) of these 
scoping meetings will be announced at least 15 days in advance through 
email, mail, local media, and on the ePlanning project web page 
identified in the ADDRESSES section, above.

Dingell Act Recreational Shooting Closures

    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 permanent shooting closures in the areas 
described under Preliminary Alternatives above. The closures are 
proposed to eliminate conflicts and safety issues associated with 
recreational shooting, including conflicts with other public lands 
users, neighboring residents, and the degradation of cultural and 
natural resources. The closures would relocate recreational shooting 
opportunities away from residential areas and encourage the use of 
developed shooting ranges where opportunities would be enhanced. The 
closures would also allow for the removal of trash and lead 
contaminants and the remediation of soils, vegetation, and wildlife 
habitat in the three areas. Comments may be submitted using any of the 
methods listed in the ADDRESSES section, above.

Interdisciplinary Team

    The BLM will use an interdisciplinary approach to develop the plan 
and to consider the variety of resource issues and concerns identified. 
Specialists with expertise in the following disciplines will be 
involved in this planning effort: archaeology, botany, biology, land 
use planning, range management, realty, and outdoor recreation.

Additional Information

    The BLM will identify, analyze, and consider mitigation to address 
the reasonably foreseeable impacts to resources from the proposed plan 
amendment and all reasonable alternatives and, in accordance with 40 
CFR 1502.14(e), include appropriate mitigation measures not already 
included in the proposed plan amendment or alternatives. Mitigation may 
include avoidance, minimization, rectification, reduction or 
elimination over time, and compensation. Mitigation may be considered 
at multiple scales, including the landscape scale.
    The BLM will utilize and coordinate the NEPA and land use planning 
processes for this planning effort to help support procedural 
requirements under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1536) and 
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (54 U.S.C. 
306108) as provided in 36 CFR 800.2(d)(3), including public involvement 
requirements of section 106. The information about historic and 
cultural resources and threatened and endangered species within the 
area potentially affected by the proposed plan will assist the BLM in 
identifying and evaluating impacts to such resources.
    The BLM will consult with Indian Tribes on a government-to-
government basis in accordance with Executive Order 13175, BLM MS 1780, 
and other Departmental policies. Tribal concerns, including impacts on 
Indian trust assets and potential impacts to cultural resources, will 
be given due consideration. Federal, State, and local agencies, along 
with Tribes and stakeholders that may be interested in or affected by 
the proposed plan amendment that the BLM is evaluating, are invited to 
participate in the scoping process and, if eligible, may request or be 
requested by the BLM to participate in the development of the EA as a 
cooperating agency.
    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 1501.7 and 43 CFR 1610.2.

Melanie G. Barnes,
State Director, BLM New Mexico.
[FR Doc. 2022-18328 Filed 8-24-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-23-P