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Carrizo Plain National Monument
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
[Federal Register: April 24, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 79)]
[Notices]
[Page 20152-20153]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr24ap02-113]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
[CA 169-02-1610-DO]
Carrizo Plain National Monument
AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management; Bakersfield Field Office.
ACTION: Notice of Intent to (1) prepare a Resource Management Plan
(RMP) for the Carrizo Plain National Monument, designated January 17,
2001, and (2) amend the Caliente RMP, approved on May 5, 1997. This
action will require a single Environmental Assessment (EA). The
planning area is located in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Kern
Counties, in California.
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SUMMARY: This document provides notice that the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) intends to prepare an RMP and RMP amendment with an
associated EA for the Bakersfield Field Office. This planning activity
encompasses approximately 204,000 acres of public land. The plan will
fulfill the needs and obligations set forth by the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Federal Land Policy and Management
Act (FLPMA), the monument proclamation, and BLM management policies.
The Carrizo Plain National Monument RMP will be created by combining
the existing Carrizo Plain Natural Area Management Plan with pertinent
decisions within the Caliente RMP, and amending those decisions as
needed to bring them into conformance with the monument proclamation.
Those decisions within the Caliente RMP that pertain only to Carrizo
will then be removed from the Caliente RMP by amendment. Both the
Caliente RMP and the Carrizo Plain Natural Area Management Plan were
prepared by the BLM in collaboration with a broad cross-section of
interested parties. The BLM will again work collaboratively with
interested parties to review the management decisions that are best
suited to local, regional, and national needs and concerns. The
environmental review process includes an evaluation of the pertinent
RMP decisions in the context of the needs and interests of the public
and protection of the objects of historic and scientific interest
specified in the proclamation.
DATES: This notice initiates the planning process. General scoping will
last a minimum of 60 days. The Draft Carrizo RMP and Draft Caliente RMP
Amendment/EA are expected to be completed in December 2002. A Notice of
Availability will be published in the Federal Register, beginning a 60
day public comment period. Public meetings will be held during the 60
day comment period. A decision on the Carrizo Plain National Monument
RMP and Caliente RMP Plan Amendment is expected by May 2003.
ADDRESSES: Written comments should be sent to Carrizo Plain National
Monument RMP, Bureau of Land Management, Bakersfield Field Office, 3801
Pegasus Drive, Bakersfield, California 93308; Fax 661 391-6040.
Documents pertinent to this proposal may be examined at the Bakersfield
Field Office located in Bakersfield, California. Comments, including
names and street addresses of respondents, will be available for public
review at the Bakersfield Field Office during regular business hours
7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays, and may
be published as part of the EA. Individual respondents may request
confidentiality. If you wish to withhold your name or street address
from public review or from disclosure under the Freedom of Information
Act, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your written
comment. Such requests will be honored to the extent allowed by law.
All submissions from organizations and businesses, and from individuals
identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations
or businesses, will be available for public inspection in their
entirety.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: For further information and/or to have your
name added to our mailing list, contact Chris Ryan, Telephone 661 391-
6107.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Carrizo Plain National Monument is
currently managed under the recently completed Carrizo Plain Natural
Area Management Plan and the Caliente RMP. Together, these existing
plans provide a comprehensive management program which is believed to
be appropriate for the new monument. While BLM will review this
existing management program in light of current issues associated with
the new monument, a full scale planning effort is not considered
necessary. However, BLM will evaluate any public comments as to the
adequacy of the existing management program prior to making a final
determination on the scope of the monument plan and related NEPA
document. (1) The new Carrizo RMP will be comprised of those goals,
decisions, and allocations within the Caliente RMP that pertain to the
Carrizo Plain National Monument, combined with the primary goals and
decisions identified within the Carrizo Plain Natural Area Management
Plan. Activity plan direction from the Carrizo Plain Natural Area
Management Plan will be carried forward and appended to the Carrizo
Plain National Monument RMP. Modification of existing land use planning
decisions is not anticipated except where necessary to conform to the
monument proclamation. (2) The Caliente RMP will be amended by removing
those decisions and allocations that pertain only to public lands
within the Carrizo Plain National Monument, and clarifying that the
remaining direction excludes the monument from that point forward. This
will eliminate any overlap and potential conflict between the two land
use plans.
Public Participation: Public meetings will be held during the EA
public comment period. In order to ensure local community participation
and input, public meeting locations will be rotated among the towns of
San Luis
[[Page 20153]]
Obispo, California Valley, and Bakersfield, California. Participation
is encouraged and will help determine the future management of the
Carrizo Plain National Monument and the Bakersfield Field Office public
lands. All public meetings will be announced through the local news
media, newsletters, and the BLM web site (www.ca.blm.gov) 
at least 15
days prior to the event. Any notes generated and the 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. In
addition to public meetings, formal opportunities for public
participation will be provided through comment upon publication of the
draft Carrizo RMP, and Caliente RMP Plan Amendment/EA. In addition,
written comments will be accepted throughout the entire planning
process.
Background Information: On January 17, 2001, the President signed a
proclamation creating the Carrizo Plain National Monument. The monument
encompasses approximately 204,000 acres of public lands primarily in
San Luis Obispo County, with smaller portions within Kern and Santa
Barbara Counties, all in California. Located midway between the cities
of Bakersfield and San Luis Obispo, the monument links Bittercreek
National Wildlife Refuge to the southeast with privately conserved
lands and the Los Padres National Forest to the northwest. The Caliente
RMP was completed in 1997 and encompassed all BLM managed public lands
within San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Kings, Tulare, and
western Kern counties. Public involvement in preparation of the
Caliente RMP was solicited through announcements in the Federal
Register, the mailing of a notice to 1,300 people and organizations,
six scoping meetings, the mailing of a draft plan to 1,000 interested
publics, and 6 public open houses. The Carrizo Plain Natural Area
Management Plan was completed between 1996 and 1999. This plan was
jointly prepared and signed by The Nature Conservancy, California
Department of Fish and Game, and BLM, following public involvement that
included a mailing to 1,000 people and organizations, 7 public
meetings, and an additional mailing to a list of 200 people and
organizations before the final plan was compiled. Neither plan has been
amended previously, and both continue to provide clear and broadly
supported direction for public lands now within the Carrizo Plain
National Monument.
Elaine Marquis-Brong,
Director, National Landscape Conservation System, Bureau of Land
Management.
[FR Doc. 02-9593 Filed 4-24-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-32-P