Proposed Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement; Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[UT-030-99-1610-00]

Proposed Management Plan/Final Environmental Impact Statement;

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with Section 102 of the National Environmental

Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), section 202 of the Federal Land Policy and

Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA), and 43 CFR part 1610, the Proposed

Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) has

been prepared for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM),

Utah. This notice announces the availability of the Proposed Management

Plan, which may be protested for a 30 day period to the Director of the

Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The Proposed Management Plan provides

decisions for management of approximately 1,870,765 acres of public

lands in Kane and Garfield Counties in south-central Utah. The Proposed

Management Plan: (a) Draws upon elements of each of the five

alternatives analyzed in the Draft Management Plan/Draft EIS to

formulate the Proposed Management Plan, (b) reflects consideration

given to public comments on, and corrections to, the Draft Management

Plan/Draft EIS, as well as rewording for clarification, and (c)

incorporates a refined environmental impact analysis section. The FEIS

is also being made available for 30 days prior to making any decision

in accordance with 40 CFR 1506.10(a)(2).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Killingsworth, Planning

Coordinator, Bureau of Land Management, Grand Staircase-Escalante

National Monument, 335 South Main Street, Suite 010, Cedar City, Utah

84720, telephone 435-865-5100.

ADDRESSES: Protests must be addressed to the Director (WO-210), Bureau

of Land Management, Attn: Ms. Brenda Williams, Protests Coordinator,

1849 C Street, NW., Department of the Interior, Washington, DC 20240,

within 30 days after the date of publication of the notice for the

Proposed Management Plan.

DATES: The Proposed Management Plan may be protested. The protest

period will commence with the date of publication of a Notice of Filing

by the Environmental Protection Agency, which is expected to be on July

30, 1999. Protests must be submitted in writing and must be postmarked

on or before August 30, 1999.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Proposed Management Plan presents

objectives and decisions for managing public lands for the following

resource categories or uses: Geology; Paleontology; Archaeology;

History; Soils and Biological Soil Crusts; Vegetation and Vegetation

Management; Riparian; Special Status Plant Species; Fish and Wildlife;

Special Status Animal Species; Water; Air Quality; Recreational

Facilities, Activities, and Uses; Rights-of-Way; Commercial Uses

(Filming, Outfitter and Guides, Vending); Forestry Products; Valid

Existing Rights; Livestock Grazing; Water Related Developments;

Wildfire Management; Wildlife Services; Visual Resource Management; and

Wild and Scenic Rivers. The BLM has concluded that 223 miles of river

segments would be recommended as suitable for Congressional designation

under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This Proposed Management Plan

promotes opportunities for community based partnerships and

collaborative processes for successful and effective management of

public lands into the future.

The Draft Management Plan/Draft EIS was released for public review

and comment in November of 1998 and was followed by a four month

comment period. The draft management plan/draft EIS analyzed five

alternative management strategies for public lands in GSENM, Utah.

The Monument Planning Office received over 6,500 comment letters on

the draft management plan/draft EIS from local, State and Federal

governments, interest groups, and the public at large. Since the

release of the draft management plan/draft EIS, public meetings,

workshops, mailings, and briefings have been conducted to solicit

comments, new information, and ideas for the Proposed Management Plan.

The Proposed Management Plan responds to public comments received

on the draft management plan/draft EIS. The Proposed Management Plan

also corrects errors in the draft management plan/draft EIS identified

through the public comment process and internal BLM review. The

Proposed Management Plan and associated analysis presents a refined and

modified version of the Preferred Alternative and the accompanying

impact analysis contained in the draft management plan/draft EIS. The

Proposed Management Plan can be used in conjunction with the draft

management plan/draft EIS to facilitate review of the initial five

alternatives. The description of the affected environment and detailed

descriptions of the alternatives contained in the draft management

plan/draft EIS, as well as some of the appendices, are referenced but

not reproduced in the Proposed Management Plan.

Copies of the Proposed Management Plan are available from GSENM

Planning Office, 335 South Main Street, Suite 010, Cedar City, Utah,

84720, 435-865-5100. Public reading copies will be available for review

at all government-document depository libraries, and at the following

BLM locations: Office of Public Affairs, Main Interior Building, 18th

and C Streets N.W., Washington, DC 20240; Information Access Center

(4th Floor), Utah BLM State Office, 324 S. State Street, Salt Lake

City, Utah, 84111; Cedar City District Office, 176 East DL Sargent

Drive, Cedar City, Utah 84720; Kanab Field Office, 318 North First

East, Kanab, Utah 84741; and GSENM Field Office, Escalante, Utah

[[Page 41130]]

84726. Background information and reference materials used in

developing the Proposed Management Plan are available for review, upon

request, in Cedar City at the GSENM Planning Office.

Written protests on the Proposed Management Plan will be accepted

for 30 days following the date the Environmental Protection Agency

published the Notice of Filing of this document in the Federal

Register. It is anticipated that the filing date will be on July 30,

1999, thus ending the public review/protest period on August 30, 1999,

and the Governor's 60-day consistency review on September 28, 1999. Any

part of this Proposed Management Plan may be protested by parties who

participated in the planning process. Protests must pertain to issues

that were identified in the draft management plan/draft EIS or through

the public comment process.

Protests must be addressed to the BLM Director at the address

listed under ADDRESSES. The protest must be specific and contain the

following information (43 CFR 1610.5-2):

--The name, mailing address, telephone number and interest of the

person filing the protest;

--A statement of the issue(s) being protested;

--A statement of the part(s) of the proposed amendment being protested,

and a citing of pages, paragraphs, maps, etc., of the Proposed

Management Plan, where practical.;

--A copy of all documents addressing the issue(s) that were submitted

by the protestor during the planning process or an indication of the

date the issue or issues were discussed for the record; and

--A concise statement explaining why the proposed decision is believed

to be in error.

At the end of the 30-day protest period, the 30-day NEPA

administrative period, and the 60-day Governor's review period a Record

of Decision will be issued approving the Plan. Approval will be

withheld on any portion of the plan under protest until final action

has been completed on such protest.

Dated: July 23, 1999.

Willie R. Taylor,

Director, Office of Environmental Policy and Compliance.

[FR Doc. 99-19332 Filed 7-28-99; 8:45 am]

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