80 FR 12194 - Notice of Availability of the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement and Draft Plan Amendment to the California Desert Conservation Area Plan in the West Mojave Planning Area, Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles and San Bernardino Counties, CA

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 44 (March 6, 2015)

In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a Draft Land Use Plan Amendment and Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for the West Mojave Route Network Project (WMRNP) for the West Mojave (WEMO) Planning Area of the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) and by this notice is announcing the opening of the comment period.

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 44 (Friday, March 6, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12194-12195]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-05127]



[[Page 12194]]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLCAD08000.L12200000.DS0000.15XL1109AF.LXSSB0010000]


Notice of Availability of the Draft Supplemental Environmental 
Impact Statement and Draft Plan Amendment to the California Desert 
Conservation Area Plan in the West Mojave Planning Area, Inyo, Kern, 
Los Angeles and San Bernardino Counties, CA

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 
1969, as amended, and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
1976, as amended, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has prepared a 
Draft Land Use Plan Amendment and Draft Supplemental Environmental 
Impact Statement (SEIS) for the West Mojave Route Network Project 
(WMRNP) for the West Mojave (WEMO) Planning Area of the California 
Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) and by this notice is announcing the 
opening of the comment period.

DATES: To ensure that comments will be considered, the BLM must receive 
written comments on the Draft Land Use Plan Amendment/Draft 
Supplemental EIS within 90 days following the date the Environmental 
Protection Agency publishes its notice of the Draft Land Use Plan 
Amendment/Draft SEIS in the Federal Register. The BLM will announce 
future meetings or hearings and any other public participation 
activities at least 15 days in advance through public notices, media 
releases, and/or mailings.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments related to the WMRNP by any of the 
following methods:
     Web site: http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/cdd/west_mojave__wemo.html.
     Email: [email protected].
     Fax: 951-697-5299; Attn: WMRNP Plan Amendment.
     Mail: Bureau of land Management, California Desert 
District, Attn: WMRNP Plan Amendment, 22835 Calle San Juan de Los 
Lagos, Moreno Valley, CA 92553
    Copies of the WMRNP Draft Plan Amendment and Draft Supplemental EIS 
are available in the California Desert District Office at the above 
address; the Ridgecrest Field Office, 300 S. Richmond Rd., Ridgecrest, 
CA 93555; and the Barstow Field Office, 2601 Barstow Road, Barstow CA 
92311. Copies are also available online at the above address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Edy Seehafer, WMRNP Manager, telephone 
760-252-6021; address 2601 Barstow Road, Barstow, CA 92311; email 
[email protected]. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the 
deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-
800-877-8339 to contact the above individual during normal business 
hours. The FIRS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to leave a 
message or question with the above individual. You will receive a reply 
during normal business hours.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The West Mojave Route Network Project 
(WMRNP) will adopt transportation and travel strategy and designate 
routes on public lands in the WEMO Planning Area. The WEMO Planning 
Area covers 9.4 million acres of the CDCA in the western portion of the 
Mojave Desert in southern California, including parts of San 
Bernardino, Los Angeles, Kern, and Inyo Counties. The WMRNP applies to 
the 3.1 million acres of public lands within the WEMO Planning Area. In 
March, 2006, the BLM signed the Record of Decision (ROD) for the WEMO 
Plan/Amendment to the CDCA Plan. In January 2011, the U.S. District 
Court for the Northern District of California partially remanded the 
2006 WEMO Plan Amendment ROD to the BLM and directed the BLM to amend 
the CDCA Plan for travel management and reconsider route designation 
throughout the WEMO Planning Area, as well as other specified issues in 
the 2006 WEMO Plan (Center for Biological Diversity v. US Bureau of 
Land Management Order Re: Remedy [N.D. Cal. Jan 28, 2011]). The Court's 
decision identified issues with (1) the invalidation of the ``decision 
tree'' instrument used to evaluate and designate routes, (2) the 
authorization of OHV routes that were not in existence in 1980, which 
was inconsistent with the governing land use plan, (3) the lack of a 
reasonable range of alternatives to the proposed action, including an 
inadequate discussion of the No Action alternative, and (4) the 
inadequate analysis of impacts from the route network and the grazing 
program to specific resource values, including soils, cultural 
resources, certain biological resources, and air quality.
    On September 13, 2011, the BLM issued a Notice of Intent (amended 
May 13, 2013), inviting comments on the proposed scope and content of 
the WMRNP. The WMRNP includes a land-use plan amendment to the 
California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) Plan for Livestock Grazing, 
Recreation, and Motor Vehicle Access Elements for the WEMO Planning 
Area, an associated travel management framework, and activity-plan 
level route designations and implementation strategies. The lands 
covered in the WMRNP are those that are within livestock grazing 
allotments or designated as ``Limited'' to designated routes for 
motorized access. Areas ``Closed'' to motorized access are not proposed 
for change in this plan amendment, and are not within the scope of the 
planning effort.
    The 9.4 million-acre WEMO Planning Area includes several large 
Department of Defense facilities covering almost 3 million acres, a 
portion of one National Park, 3 million acres of private lands, and 
approximately 100,000 acres of State lands, including Red Rock Canyon 
State Park. The planning area is also adjacent to three other National 
Parks/Preserves and four National Forests. Much of the planning area is 
managed as part of the BLM's National Landscape Conservation System, 
including 18 wilderness areas, three wilderness study areas and 
portions of the Pacific Crest Trail and the Old Spanish National 
Historic Trail. The planning area also includes 41 Areas of Critical 
Environmental Concern (ACECs), seven National Register Archaeological 
or Historic Districts, and four Critical Habitat Units for the 
federally-listed desert tortoise. Four of the ACECs were established as 
Desert Wildlife Management Areas (DWMAs), covering most of the desert 
tortoise critical habitat units, for the express purpose of 
conservation of desert tortoise.
    The planning area also includes eight OHV Open Areas covering 
271,661 acres. No changes are proposed to these OHV Open Areas or their 
boundaries; however, the OHV Open Areas provide major points of ingress 
to and egress from adjacent areas ``Limited'' to designated routes 
access public lands.
    The BLM used a public scoping process to determine relevant issues, 
impacts, and possible alternatives that could influence the scope of 
the environmental analysis, and to help guide the agency from plan 
level decision-making to route designation in order to comply with the 
court order.
    The public raised the following transportation and travel 
management concerns:
     The need for a good inventory and accurate information 
related to the existing environment;
     documentation and use of the regulatory criteria for route 
minimization;
     mitigation for loss of access;
     sensitive resource protection;

[[Page 12195]]

     maintenance of access for various types of recreational, 
scientific and other uses;
     access to private lands;
     trespass;
     regional connectivity;
     improving GIS and on-the-ground information for the 
public; and
     other implementation strategies such as signing, 
monitoring and law enforcement.
    In addition, a substantial number of comments indicated issues and 
needs associated with specific routes and route areas in the WEMO 
transportation system, and included recommendations on the designation 
of specific routes. A few comments were also received on grazing issues 
and the scope of the supplemental grazing program analysis.
    In response to court concerns and on-the-ground changes since 2006, 
NEPA considerations focused on cumulative effects of the transportation 
system alternatives to resource values, particularly air quality, 
soils, cultural resources, certain biological resources, and certain 
sensitive species, cumulative effects of grazing, and potential 
cumulative loss of recreational access opportunities. In response to 
public input, access considerations focused on maintaining a viable 
transportation network, diverse recreational opportunities, providing 
access for specific users, (including rock-hounders, motorcyclists, 
scientific and educational activities, and non-motorized users), 
dealing with conflicts between users, and maintaining commercial access 
needs.
    Plan amendments would address specific CDCA Plan inconsistencies 
with regulation and BLM policies in the WEMO Planning Area; including 
amending language that limits the route network to routes that existed 
in 1980 and travel management guidance for route designations. Changes 
are proposed to the existing land-use plan to address stopping, 
parking, and camping adjacent to routes in Limited Access Areas within 
the WEMO Planning Area, and to establish a regional minimization 
strategy for the travel route network. Changes are also proposed to the 
grazing program that would reallocate forage from livestock use to 
wildlife use and ecosystem function in desert tortoise habitat for 
inactive allotments or allotments that become vacant. In addition, the 
Draft considers plan level decisions modifying motorized use on four 
specific lakebeds, including Cuddeback Lake and competitive motorized 
use of routes. The Draft also considers various travel management 
implementation frameworks. Four alternatives are evaluated, including a 
No Action alternative.
    Finally, the Draft includes activity-level specific route 
designation alternatives, based on the 43CFR 8342.1 criteria and 
different thresholds for minimization or closure. The preferred 
alternative would designate approximately 10,300 miles of routes within 
the WEMO Planning Area as available for motorized use, approximately130 
miles of routes would be available for either non-motorized or non-
mechanized use, and approximately 4,400 miles of routes would be 
closed.
    The preferred alternative also includes a regional mitigation 
strategy that would limit the extent of off-route stopping and parking 
throughout the planning area to minimize impacts to undisturbed 
habitat, enhance watersheds, and protect adjacent sensitive resources. 
Other measures are based on proximity to sensitive resources, such as 
riparian systems, that would enhance these resources throughout the 
planning area.
    The preferred alternative provides for a limited number of 
designated camping and staging areas to direct intensive use to 
manageable locations. Finally, the preferred alternative proposes an 
integrated, community-based implementation strategy that addresses 
outreach, compliance and enforcement strategy in which partnerships 
with adjacent communities, users, local Friends and other interest 
groups, national and State recreational and conservation coalitions, 
and other interested citizens are a central component.
    Please note that public comments and information submitted 
including names, street addresses, and email addresses of persons who 
submit comments will be available for public review and disclosure at 
the above address during regular business hours (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.), 
Monday through Friday, except holidays.
    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 
request to withhold your personal identifying information from public 
review, BLM cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

    Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6, 40 CFR 1506.10, 43 CFR 1610.2.

Thomas Pogacnik,
Deputy State Director, Natural Resources.
[FR Doc. 2015-05127 Filed 3-5-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-40-P