[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 233 (Monday, December 6, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70469-70470]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-26725]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[AK-040-05-1610-DO-087L]
Notice of Intent To Prepare a Resource Management Plan and
Environmental Impact Statement, and a Request for Information for the
Scoping Process
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of intent.
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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM), Anchorage Field Office (AFO), Alaska, is initiating a planning
effort to prepare the Bay Resource Management Plan (RMP). This planning
activity encompasses approximately 3.6 million acres of BLM
administered land in the Bristol Bay and Goodnews Bay areas of Alaska.
Section 201 and 202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of
1976 (FLPMA: 43 U.S.C. 1711) and the regulations in 43 CFR part 1600
direct this planning effort. The plan will fulfill the needs and
obligations set forth by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
As required in 43 CFR 3420.1-2, this notice is also the specific call
for coal resource information and identification of areas where there
is an interest in future leasing and development of federal coal.
DATES: The scoping comment period will commence with the publication of
this notice and will end 90 days after publication. Meetings and
comment deadlines will be announced through the local news media,
newsletters and a Web site. Comments on issues and planning criteria
should be received on or before the end of the scoping period at the
address listed below.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to the Bay Planning Team,
BLM-AFO, 6881 Abbott Loop Road, Anchorage, Alaska 99507; or via fax
(907) 267-1267. Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at
the Anchorage Field Office located in Anchorage, Alaska.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Interested parties may obtain further
information or request to be placed on the mailing list for the Bay
Resource Management Plan (RMP) planning effort by contacting Pat
McClenahan, RMP Team Leader, (907) 267-1484, or June Bailey, Field
Manager, Anchorage Field Office, 6881 Abbott Loop Road, Anchorage,
Alaska 99507, (907) 267-1205. The toll-free telephone number is 1-800-
478-1263.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM will work closely with interested
parties to identify the management decisions that are best suited to
the needs of the public. This public process will take into account
local, regional, and national needs and concerns. This notice initiates
the public scoping process to identify planning issues and to develop
planning criteria.
After gathering public comments on the issues the plan should
address, the suggested issues will be placed in one of three
categories:
1. Issues to be resolved in the plan;
2. Issues resolved through policy or administrative action; or
3. Issues beyond the scope of this plan.
Rationale will be provided in the plan for each issue placed in
category two or three. In addition to these major issues, a number of
management questions and concerns will be addressed in the plan. The
public is encouraged to help identify these questions and concerns
during the scoping process.
An interdisciplinary approach will be used to develop the plan in
order to consider the variety of resource issues and concerns
identified. Disciplines involved in the planning process will include
specialists with expertise in lands and realty, wildlife, subsistence,
fisheries, vegetation, outdoor recreation, fire management, minerals
and geology, forestry, archaeology, paleontology, hydrology, soil,
sociology and economics. The planning area includes lands adjacent to
Bristol Bay and Goodnews Bay on the west side of the Aleutian Range,
and extends southward on the Alaska Peninsula to Big Creek, south of
South Naknek. Within this area there are approximately 3.6 million
acres (surface estate) of BLM-administered lands occurring primarily as
blocks of land, with some small scattered tracts. Approximately 979,171
acres have been selected by Native Corporations, and 914,933 acres have
been selected by the State of Alaska, but have not been conveyed.
Preliminary issues and management concerns have been identified by
BLM and other agencies, and in prior meetings with individuals and user
groups. They represent the BLM's knowledge to date on the existing
issues and concerns with current management. Some concerns that will be
addressed in the planning effort include the management of subsistence;
oil and gas; access; locatable minerals; D1 and D2 lands; and Wild and
Scenic Rivers.
Public Participation: Public meetings will be held throughout the
plan scoping and preparation period. In order to ensure local community
participation and input, public meetings will be scheduled in a number
of communities within the planning area. Early participation by all of
those interested is encouraged and will help determine the future
management of lands within the Bay planning area. At least 15 days
public notice will be given for activities where the public is invited
to attend. The minutes and list of attendees for each meeting will be
available to the public and open for 30 days to any participant who
wishes to clarify the views they expressed. Written comments will be
accepted throughout the planning process at the address shown above.
[[Page 70470]]
Freedom of Information Act Considerations: Public comments
submitted for this planning effort, including names and street
addresses of respondents, will be available for public review at the
Anchorage Field Office during regular business hours (7:30 a.m. to 4
p.m.), Monday through Friday, except holidays. All submissions from
organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying
themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or
businesses, will be made available for public inspection in their
entirety. Individual respondents may request confidentiality. If you
wish to withhold your name or address from public review or from
disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, you must state this
prominently at the beginning of your comments. Such requests will be
honored to the extent allowed by law.
June Bailey,
Field Office Manager.
[FR Doc. 04-26725 Filed 12-3-04; 8:45 am]
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