Notice2023-09619
Notice of Intent To Amend the California Desert Conservation Area Plan Associated With the Mojave Trails National Monument Management Plan and Prepare an Associated Environmental Assessment
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Published
May 5, 2023
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentLand Management Bureau
Abstract
In compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA), and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) California State Director intends to prepare a management plan for the Mojave Trails National Monument (MTNM), through an amendment to the approved California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) land use plan, and an environmental assessment (EA). By this notice, the BLM is announcing the beginning of the scoping period to solicit public comments and Identify issues, providing the planning criteria for public review, and issuing a call for nominations for areas of critical environmental concern (ACECs).
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 87 (Friday, May 5, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 87 (Friday, May 5, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29153-29156]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-09619]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[BLM_CA_FRN_MO4500168353]
Notice of Intent To Amend the California Desert Conservation Area
Plan Associated With the Mojave Trails National Monument Management
Plan and Prepare an Associated Environmental Assessment
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, as amended (FLPMA), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
California State Director intends to prepare a management plan for the
Mojave Trails National Monument (MTNM), through an amendment to the
approved California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) land use plan, and
an environmental assessment (EA). By this notice, the BLM is announcing
the beginning of the scoping period to solicit public comments and
Identify issues, providing the planning criteria for public review, and
issuing a call for nominations for areas of critical environmental
concern (ACECs).
DATES: The BLM requests that the public submit comments concerning the
scope of the analysis, potential alternatives, and identification of
relevant information and studies, and ACEC nominations by June 20,
2023. To afford the BLM the opportunity to consider issues and ACEC
nominations raised by commenters in the draft land use plan amendment/
EA, please ensure your comments are received prior to the close of the
45-day scoping period or 15 days after the last public meeting,
whichever is later. Scoping meetings are expected to occur in late May
to early June 2023 in the cities of Needles, Barstow, and Twentynine
Palms. There will be one virtual meeting and three meetings in person.
All meetings will be announced though a new release.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on issues and planning criteria
related to the MTNM Management Plan and nominations of new ACECs by any
of the following methods:
<bullet> Website: <a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/admin/project/2022347/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/admin/project/2022347/510</a>.
<bullet> Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e4a6a8a9bba7a5bbaaa2abbba9b0aaa9bbb488858aa4868889ca838b92"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0a48464755494b55444c4555475e4447555a666b644a686667246d657c">[email protected]</span></a>.
<bullet> Fax: 760-326-7099.
<bullet> Mail: 1303 S U.S. Hwy 95, Needles, CA 92363.
Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined online at
<a href="https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/admin/project/2022347/510">https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/admin/project/2022347/510</a> and at
the Needles Field Office.
Addresses of meeting locations are not yet determined but one each
will be held in the:
<bullet> City of Twentynine Palms, CA
<bullet> City of Needles, CA
<bullet> City of Barstow, CA
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Noelle Glines-Bovio, Mojave Trails
National Monument Manager, telephone (760) 903-8356; address: Mojave
Trails National Monument--Monument Plan Comments, Bureau of Land
Management, 1303 U.S.-95, Needles, California 95521-4373; email:
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f9bbb5b4a6bab8a6b7bfb6a6b4adb7b4a6a9959897b99b9594d79e968f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="bffdf3f2e0fcfee0f1f9f0e0f2ebf1f2e0efd3ded1ffddd3d291d8d0c9">[email protected]</span></a>. Contact Noelle Glines-Bovio 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 for contacting Noelle Glines-Bovio. 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: This document provides notice that the BLM
California State Director intends to prepare a management plan for the
MTNM, through an amendment to the approved CDCA land use plan, which
will include an EA; announces the beginning of the scoping process;
seeks public input on issues and planning criteria; and invites the
public to
[[Page 29154]]
nominate ACECs. The land use plan amendment would change the approved
CDCA plan as amended. In particular, the BLM anticipates potential
amendments to decisions associated with special designations, visual
resources, lands and realty, cultural resources, and recreation. The
planning area is located in San Bernardino and Riverside counties,
California, and encompasses approximately 1.6 million acres of public
land.
Purpose and Need
The MTNM Management Plan and CDCA land use plan amendment responds
to the following overarching requirements and guidance in determining
the management framework necessary to protect the monument's resources,
objects, and values.
FLPMA provides the basic underpinnings for the BLM's management of
public lands. Section 302 of FLPMA states that the BLM is to manage
public lands under the principles of multiple-use and sustained yield
``except that where a tract of such public land has been dedicated to
specific uses according to other provisions of law, it shall be managed
in accordance with such law.'' In section 601 of FLPMA, Congress
designated the CDCA with the purpose of ``provid[ing] for the immediate
and future protection and administration of the public lands in the
California desert within the framework of a program of multiple use and
sustained yield, and the maintenance of environmental quality.'' The
MTNM is located within the boundaries of the CDCA.
The MTNM is a part of the National Landscape Conservation System,
which was established by section 2002 of the Omnibus Public Land
Management Act of 2009 ``in order to conserve, protect, and restore
nationally significant landscapes'' and specifically includes national
monuments. This section also directs the BLM to manage the lands in the
National Landscape Conservation System ``in a manner that protects the
values for which the components of the system were designated.''
In 2016, Presidential Proclamation 9395 established the MTNM. This
proclamation identified the resources, objects, and values for
protection. In addition, this proclamation required the BLM to prepare
and maintain a management plan for the monument.
The BLM needs to modify some of the existing CDCA land use plan
decisions and make implementation-level decisions for the MTNM.
The purpose of the MTNM Plan and CDCA land use plan amendment is to
provide a management framework, including goals, objectives, and
management direction to guide management of BLM administered lands in
the MTNM consistent with applicable laws, regulations, and policy.
The purpose of this action is focused on the protection of the MTNM
to preserve its cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy and maintain
its diverse array of natural and scientific resources, ensuring that
the prehistoric, historic, and scientific values of the area remain for
the benefit of all Americans.
Purpose and need statements serve to frame issue identification,
alternative development, and effects analyses for the environmental
document. The following additional purposes and desired outcomes are
provided for in Proclamation 9395 or have been identified based on key
present and/or historical MTNM management challenges. Associated
challenges and opportunities that the monument management plan and land
use plan amendments will address are also summarized.
1. Manage the National Monument's scarce springs and riparian areas
in a manner that provides refuge for a wide variety of plants and
animals.
Challenges and opportunities: There are over 30 springs within the
MTNM that provide habitat for a variety of plant and wildlife
populations. In addition, underlying groundwater resources support both
springs and riparian areas. Groundwater pumping (as described in
Proclamation 9395), the spread of invasive plants, and climate change
all have the potential to impact springs and riparian areas. The BLM
will establish management guidance to manage springs and riparian areas
to meet the express provisions of law and the proclamation.
Implementation-level decisions and modifications to existing land use
plan-level decisions can help provide management direction for these
springs and riparian areas.
2. Emphasize the MTNM as a landscape for geological,
paleontological, hydrological, and ecological research, including
studies on the effects of climate change and land management practices
on ecological communities and wildlife. The MTNM also provides
opportunity for further research on ecological connectivity in the
Mojave Desert region.
Challenges and opportunities: The MTNM provides invaluable
resources to scientists. The unique area contains a stunning diversity
of lava flows, mountains, playas, sand dunes, bajadas, washes, and
other features that have been extensively studied and provide insight
for numerous disciplines. The monument also provides opportunity for
further research on ecological connectivity in the Mojave Desert
region, as it is among the most ecologically intact areas in Southern
California. Scientific research plays a crucial role in further
understanding the monument's resources, objects, and values and
informing BLM management decisions. The BLM needs to establish
implementation-level management guidance to allow research to take
place while protecting the monument's resources, objects, and values,
and establishes a process for the BLM to obtain research results and
data collected on the monument.
3. Properly care for and manage the outstanding paleontological
resources for their protection.
Challenges and opportunities: The fossil history in the MTNM has
been used to understand the climate history of the Mojave Desert.
Implementation-level decisions and modifications to existing land use
plan-level decisions should be made to support protection of
paleontological resources.
4. Protect the specific habitat types found in the MTNM that
support plant and wildlife species.
Challenges and opportunities: Uses of the monument include
increasing recreational activity, lands and realty activities such as
rights-of-ways, and mineral use that can impact various plant and
wildlife communities and habitats. Existing ACECs protect plants and
wildlife and their associated habitat. Implementation-level decisions
and modifications to existing land use plan-level decisions will allow
the BLM to manage and maintain the MTNM's diverse array of natural
resources.
5. Protect the cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy of the
MTNM.
Challenges and opportunities: Recreational use, permitted
activities, and climate change have the potential to impact the
cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy of the Mojave Trails area.
The BLM will establish management guidance to help inform the public
and protect the cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy of the
Mojave Trails area. Implementation-level decisions and modifications to
existing land use plan-level decisions will provide management
direction to protect and preserve the cultural, prehistoric, and
historic legacy of the MTNM and ensure that the prehistoric, historic,
and scientific values of this area remain available for the benefit of
all Americans.
6. Provide for use of these public lands while protecting and
preserving the area's cultural, prehistoric, and historic legacy,
maintaining its diverse
[[Page 29155]]
array of natural and scientific resources, and ensuring that the
prehistoric, historic, and scientific values of this area remain for
the benefit of all Americans.
Challenges and opportunities: Recreational activities in the area
include hiking, camping, wildlife viewing, motorized sight-seeing,
horseback riding, picnicking, mountain biking, hunting, target
shooting, and off-highway vehicle use. In addition, uses of the
monument also include rights-of-way and mineral activities associated
with valid existing rights pre-dating designation of the monument.
Recreational use accounts for the majority of visitation to the MTNM
and is an important land use in the area. Implementation-level
decisions and modifications to existing land use plan-level decisions
will consider how to protect monument resources, objects, and values
when considering other uses of monument lands.
Preliminary Alternatives
The BLM will be analyzing alternatives that explore and evaluate
different ways of achieving the purpose and need listed above through
both implementation-level decisions in the new monument management plan
and modifications to existing land use plan-level decisions. The
alternatives will explore different management strategies during this
planning effort to understand the trade-offs of different land
management approaches. The BLM welcomes comments on all preliminary
alternatives as well as suggestions for additional alternatives.
Planning Criteria
The 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 BLM personnel and from early engagement
conducted for this planning effort with Federal, State, and local
agencies; Tribes; and stakeholders. The BLM has identified preliminary
issues for this planning effort's analysis and will provide them for
public review as part of the planning criteria within the timeframe
identified in DATES above. The planning criteria are available for
public review and comment at the ePlanning website (see ADDRESSES).
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 management plan, land use plan amendment, and EA.
The BLM will hold four scoping meetings, one virtually, and three
in person at the following locations: the cities of Needles, Barstow,
and Twentynine Palms. The specific date(s) and location(s) of these
scoping meetings will be announced at least 15 days in advance through
local media, newspapers, ePlanning project page, the BLM website, and
the BLM social media.
Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACECs)
The following 15 ACECs are currently designated in the planning
area: Afton Canyon (9,194 acres; rare vegetation and wildlife habitat
relevant and important values), Amboy Crater (639 acres; rare
vegetation and wildlife habitat relevant and important values), Bigelow
Cholla Research Natural Area (5,801 acres; wildlife, cultural, and
scenic relevant and important values), Bristol Mountains (229,397
acres; scenic values, cultural, and wildlife relevant and important
values), Cadiz Valley (171,791 acres; rare vegetation/wildlife habitat
[old growth] relevant and important values), Cady Mountains (104,315
acres; rare vegetation relevant and important values), Chemehuevi
(471,323 acres; rare vegetation/wildlife habitat [old growth] relevant
and important values), Chuckwalla to Chemehuevi Tortoise Linkage
(34,777 acres; rare vegetation/wildlife habitat [old growth] relevant
and important values), Marble Mountain (231 acres; natural values
[active and stabilized sand dunes, wetlands and endangered and BLM
sensitive plants] relevant and important values), Mesquite Hills-
Crucero (4,388 acres located within the MTNM and 616 acres located
outside MTNM; slender Orcutt grass habitat, cultural resources and
wildlife relevant and important values), Mojave fringe-toed lizard
(11,127 acres located within MTNM and 1,278 acres located outside MTNM;
rare habitats, vegetation, wildlife, and cultural resources relevant
and important values), Patton Military Camps (14,064 acres located
within MTNM and 107 acres located outside MTNM; cultural and historic
resources relevant and important values), Pisgah Research Natural Area
(20,990 acres; cultural resources and wildlife and plant assemblages
relevant and important values), Piute-Fenner (4,706 acres located
within MTNM and 151,004 acres located outside MTNM; desert tortoise
habitat, vegetation and sensitive botanicals, cultural and historical
resources relevant and important values), and Santos Manuel (800 acres
located within MTNM and 26,750 acres located outside MTNM; desert
tortoise habitat, culturally significant area relevant and important
values). Information about each existing ACEC, including the size,
relevant and important values, and other helpful information is
available in the CDCA Plan as amended by the Desert Renewable Energy
Conservation Plan online at on the project's website (see ADDRESSES).
The BLM will reevaluate existing designated ACECs in the draft land use
plan amendment to determine if relevant and important values still
exist and if special management attention is still warranted and
analyze additional areas for consideration of designation. No
additional areas were identified for consideration as ACECs during
preplanning and early engagement. This notice invites the public to
nominate additional areas for ACEC consideration within the planning
area. To assist the BLM in evaluating nominations for consideration in
the draft land use plan amendment, please provide supporting
descriptive materials, maps, and evidence of the relevance and
importance of resources or hazards by the close of the public comment
period to facilitate timely evaluation. The BLM has identified the
anticipated issues related to the consideration of ACECs in the
planning criteria.
Interdisciplinary Team
The BLM will use an interdisciplinary approach to develop the plan
to consider the variety of resource issues and concerns identified.
Specialists with expertise in the following disciplines will be
involved in this planning effort: rangeland management, minerals and
geology, outdoor recreation, archaeology, paleontology, wildlife and
fisheries, lands and realty, hydrology, soils, fire and fuels, visual
resources, sociology and economics, climate, and air.
Additional Information
The BLM will identify, analyze, and consider mitigation to address
the reasonably foreseeable impacts to resources from the proposed
monument management plan and land use plan amendment, and all analyzed
reasonable alternatives, and, in accordance with 40 CFR 1502.14(e),
include appropriate mitigation measures not already included in the
proposed management plan and land use plan amendment, or alternatives.
Mitigation may include avoidance, minimization, rectification,
reduction or elimination over time, and compensation; it may be
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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 compliance with
applicable 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 monument management plan and
land use plan amendment will assist the BLM in identifying and
evaluating impacts to such resources.
The BLM will consult with Tribal Nations 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 BLM's proposed MTNM Management Plan and CDCA land use plan
amendment 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 environmental analysis 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 1501.9 and 43 CFR 1610.2.)
Karen E. Mouritsen,
BLM California State Director.
[FR Doc. 2023-09619 Filed 5-4-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-15-P
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