Land Management Bureau April 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice announces the availability of the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Handbook to support implementation of the procedures the BLM uses to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (FACA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Front Range Resource Advisory Council (RAC), will meet as indicated below.

This order modifies and establishes a 20-year term for two Public Land Orders and two Secretarial Orders, which withdrew public lands and reserved them for use of the Federal Aviation Administration in the maintenance of air navigation facilities. The lands, which aggregate approximately 193 acres, are still needed for the purpose for which they were withdrawn. The lands will remain withdrawn from surface entry and mining but not from mineral and geothermal leasing or mineral material sales.

In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (FACA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Idaho Falls District Resource Advisory Council (RAC), will meet as indicated below.

This order permanently transfers 160 acres of public land to the Department of Energy for its Maybell West Uranium Repository, in accordance with the terms of the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-604), as amended.

This order revokes a Public Land Order insofar as it affects 20 acres of public land within the Black Hills National Forest withdrawn from surface entry and mining and reserved for use of the Forest Service as the Pactola Administrative Site. The land is no longer needed for administrative purposes. This order opens the land for sale.

This order partially revokes a Public Land Order insofar as it affects 80 acres of public land within a national forest, which was withdrawn and reserved for use of the Forest Service as the Mt. Olympus Powder Magazine Administrative Site. This order also opens 5.75 acres of that land to disposal in accordance with the Forest Service Facility Realignment and Enhancement Act of 2005.

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 COC59920 from the following companies: (1) Cleary Petroleum Corp., (2) GSE LTD, (3) Peacock Comm. Properties, LTD, and (4) Joe R. Peacock, Sr., for lands in Montrose 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.

This order extends the withdrawal created by Public Land Order No. 6705, for an additional 20-year period. This extension is necessary to continue protection of the United States Air Force Beaver Creek Research Site in Alaska which would otherwise expire on January 10, 2009.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has examined and found suitable for classification for lease and/or conveyance under the provisions of the Recreation and Public Purposes Act, 44.49 acres of public land in Carbon County, Wyoming. Carbon County proposes to use the land for museum purposes.

This order extends the withdrawal created by Public Land Order No. 6677, for an additional 20-year period. This extension is necessary to continue protection of the United States Air Force Beaver Creek Radio Relay Site in Alaska which would otherwise expire on May 22, 2008.

The purpose of this notice is to inform the public and interested State and local government officials of the filing of Plats of Survey in Nevada.

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) has filed application requesting the Secretary of the Interior segregate from the mining laws approximately 1345 acres of public land associated with the proposed withdrawal and transfer of jurisdiction. The proposed withdrawal will protect public health and safety on lands contaminated by previous mining and milling operations. This notice temporarily segregates the lands for up to 2 years from location and entry under the United States mining laws while the withdrawal application is being processed.

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) has filed an application requesting the Secretary of the Interior to segregate from the mining laws approximately 749.08 acres of public land and 2559.13 acres of Federal reserved mineral interests underlying private surface estate from mining associated with a proposed withdrawal and transfer of jurisdiction. The proposed withdrawal will protect public health and safety on lands contaminated by previous mining and milling operations. This notice temporarily segregates the lands for up to 2 years from location and entry under the United States mining laws while the withdrawal application is being processed.

As required by 43 CFR 2650.7(d), notice is hereby given that an appealable decision approving oil and gas for conveyance pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, as amended, will be issued to Doyon, Limited. The oil and gas was reserved to the United States pursuant to the Act of March 8, 1922, as amended and supplemented, in Native allotment certificates issued for the lands described below:

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Proposed Resource Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement (PRMP/FEIS) for the Yuma Field Office.

As required by 43 CFR 2650.7(d), notice is hereby given that an appealable decision approving lands for conveyance pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act will be issued to Ounalashka Corporation. The lands are in the vicinity of Unalaska, Alaska, and are located in:

The plats of survey of the following described land will be officially filed in the Colorado State Office, Bureau of Land Management, Lakewood, Colorado, effective 10 a.m., March 31, 2008. All inquiries should be sent to the Colorado State Office (CO-956), Bureau of Land Management, 2850 Youngfield Street, Lakewood, Colorado 80215- 7093. The plat and field notes, in duplicate, of the dependent resurvey of the Colorado-New Mexico State Line (S. bdy.), the west boundary, and the subdivisional lines of Township 32 North, Range 19 West, of the New Mexico Principal Meridian, Colorado, were accepted on November 6, 2007. The plat and field notes, of the dependent resurvey of the Colorado-New Mexico State Line (S. bdy.), and the survey of the subdivisional lines of Township 32 North, Range 15 West, of the New Mexico Principal Meridian, Colorado, were accepted on November 15, 2007. The plat and/or field notes, in duplicate, of the dependent resurvey and surveys in Townships 35 and 36 North, Range 14 West, New Mexico Principal Meridian, Colorado, were accepted on November 21, 2007. The plat, in duplicate (in two sheets), of the entire record, of the dependent resurvey and metes and bounds survey in Section 12, Township 1 North, Range 73 West, Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, was accepted on January 8, 2008. The plat and field notes, in duplicate, of the dependent resurvey of two mineral surveys in Township 42 North, Range 10 West, New Mexico Principal Meridian, Colorado, were accepted on February 12, 2008. The plat, in duplicate (in two sheets), of the entire record, of the resurvey of a portion of the subdivisional lines and a portion of M.S. 20596, Big Stake Lode, in Township 22 South, Range 71 West, Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, was accepted on February 20, 2008. The plat, in duplicate, of the entire record of dependent resurvey of Mineral Survey 18826, Iron Mask No. 2 lode and the survey of a portion of the proposed center line of the Continental Divide Trail, in suspended Township 41 North, Range 6 West, New Mexico Principal Meridian, was accepted on March 6, 2008. The plat, in duplicate, of the entire record of subdivision survey of west half of the northwest quarter of section 6, Township 33 North, Range 4 West, New Mexico Principal Meridian, Colorado, was accepted on March 31, 2008. The supplemental plats (2), in duplicate, in section 30, T. 6 S., R. 77 W. and in section 25, T. 6 S., R. 78 W., Sixth Principal Meridian, Colorado, were accepted on March 31, 2008.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published a document in the Federal Register of March 27, 2008, requesting revision of a currently approved information collection and public comment on this information collection. The document contained an incorrect subject heading and an incorrect telephone number.

Pursuant to Section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA) and Section 102 (2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Four Rivers Field Office (FRFO), Boise, Idaho intends to prepare a RMP with an associated EIS for the Four Rivers Planning Area. Publication of this notice also initiates a public scoping period to extend until 15 days after the last public scoping meeting. RMPs are the basic land use documents used by the BLM that guide land use decisions and management actions on public lands. RMP level decisions establish goals and objectives (i.e. desired future conditions), the measures needed to achieve those goals and objectives and the parameters for resource use on BLM lands. This RMP will replace the 1988 Cascade RMP and portions of the 1983 Kuna Management Framework Plan (MFP) and the 1987 Jarbidge RMP. The Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area (NCA), located in the FRFO, is being addressed in a separate, comprehensive RMP currently available as a Final EIS.

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 COC62063 from Red Willow Production, LLC for lands in Jackson 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.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will direct the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and conduct public scoping meetings for a road right-of-way (ROW) proposal submitted by the City of Goodyear pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 4332, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended. The proposed project includes the construction, operation, and maintenance of a two-lane roadway across public land in order to access the Goodyear Master Planning Area (MPA). The MPA encompasses approximately 67 square miles annexed in May 2007.

In accordance with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA), the Federal Advisory Committee Act of 1972 (FACA), and the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act of 2004 (FLREA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Coeur d'Alene District Resource Advisory Council (RAC) and Recreation RAC Subcommittee will meet as indicated below.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is requesting public applications to fill four expired terms on the Steens Mountain Advisory Council (SMAC). Applications will be accepted for a person who is a local environmental representative, a person who is a grazing permittee in the Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection Area (CMPA), a person with expertise and interest in wild horse management, and a person who is a member of the dispersed recreation community on the Steens Mountains.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announces the reopening of the public comment period for the, ``Draft Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resource Management Plan Amendments to Address Land Use Allocations in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming and Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement.'' This draft national programmatic EIS addresses lands that may eventually be available for oil shale and tar sands leasing on public lands administered by BLM in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.