BLM Releases RMP

Below is the press release about the RMP that I made a post about in February.  You can read that post by clicking on OPENING A CLOSED AREA.

This is our official opportunity to submit our comments regarding the re-opening of the Adminstrative Pastures.  So please follow the directions below in regards to where to submit your comments.  And remember that this RMP includes more than just the horse range, so please be specific about that in your comment (see below), so they know you are talking about the horse range.

Also, if you can, attend one of the meetings.  I know I will be.   You should be aware that these are “open house” type meetings.  There will only be a very short process-oriented presentation and introductions.   Other than that, the remainder of the meeting will be reserved to answer questions in an open house style format where individuals visit with various resource specialists.  You should come prepared with questions that you may need answered to help you formulate comments.

Here is another link telling more details: BLM RMP.  Please make sure you read the link pertaining to the Pryor Horse Range throughly before submitting your comments. You can click HORSE RANGE to go to those pages (this is a fact sheet).  Please go into the actual RMP (chapter 2) and look at sections on Wild Horses  and the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range.  By Clicking CHAPTER 2.

Please remember that there are many other sections of the RMP that will have management prescriptions that apply to the horse range (for example the travel management sections, vegetation, noxious weeds, recreation, wildlife, wilderness, fire, etc).  So please read it carefully.

Sandy

Bureau of Land Management

Contact: Carolyn Sherve-Bybee (406-896-5234) or Kristen Lenhardt (406-896-5228)

For Immediate Release, March 29, 2013

BLM Releases Billings and Pompeys Pillar National Monument Draft Management Plan for Public Review

BILLINGS, MT – The Bureau of Land Management has released its Draft Resource Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (RMP/EIS) describing different alternatives for managing public lands within the Billings Field Office and Pompeys Pillar National Monument.  The draft plan also includes a range of conservation measures that address Greater Sage-Grouse for this area.  This action kicks off a 90-day public comment period for interested publics to submit comments to the BLM.

Compact disks of the document are being delivered to a number of businesses, organizations, individuals, elected officials, tribal governments and state and federal agencies for review.  A limited number of paper copies of the draft document are also be available from BLM’s Billings Field Office, 5001 Southgate Drive, or on the internet at http://blm.gov/4ykd

The Billings and Pompeys Pillar National Monument Draft RMP/EIS describes a range of alternatives (including a draft preferred alternative) for managing all of the BLM-administered surface (434,154 acres) and federal mineral estate (1,839,782 acres) managed by the Billings Field Office in Carbon, Golden Valley, Musselshell, Stillwater, Sweet Grass, Wheatland, and Yellowstone counties in Montana as well as portions of Big Horn County, Montana and Big Horn County, Wyoming.

The release of the Draft RMP/EIS marks the beginning of a 90-day public review and comment period and as part of the review and comment process, public meetings are being scheduled throughout the area to answer questions and gather comments concerning the Draft.

Community	Location	Date	Time
Bridger	Bridger Senior Center/Golden Age Society118 C Street	April 30, 2013	7:00 – 9:00 PM
Big Timber	Carnegie Public Library – Community Room314 McLeod St.	May 1, 2013	7:00 – 9:00 PM
Red Lodge	Senior Center207 S Villard Ave.	May 2, 2013	7:00 – 9:00 PM
Roundup	Emergency Service Bldg. Ambulance Barn704 1st St. East	May 6, 2013	7:00 – 9:00 PM
Lovell	National Park Service Bighorn Canyon National Conservation AreaVisitor Center20 Highway 14A East	May 7, 2013	7:00 – 9:00 PM
Billings	Hampton Inn (Lewis Room)5110 Southgate Dr.	May 8, 2013	7:00 – 9:00 PM
Others, if needed	To be announced

These meetings are scheduled to run from 7 to 9 p.m. and will be held in an open house forum.  Each meeting will include introductions and a brief BLM presentation, but the purpose of the open house will be to offer an opportunity to talk individually with various BLM resource specialists one-on-one.  The BLM will not be able to accept or record verbal comments during the meetings, but comment forms will be provided for members of the public to submit written comments, which are considered in finalizing the document.

The public may submit written comments related to the Billings and Pompeys Pillar National Monument DRMP/EIS by any of the following methods:

Email: Billings_PompeysPillar_RMP@blm.gov

Fax:    (406) 896-5281

Mail: “Billings/PPNM RMP Comments,” Billings Field Office, 5001 Southgate Drive, Billings, MT 59101.

Hand-deliver: Billings Field Office, 5001 Southgate Drive, Billings, MT.

Whenever possible, please reference the page or section in the DRMP/EIS to which the comment applies.  Specific comments addressing concerns that are within BLM’s legal responsibilities and can be resolved in the land-use planning process would be most helpful.  The Draft RMP/EIS was developed with assistance from local counties, the state, other federal agencies, tribal governments, BLM’s Eastern Montana Resource Advisory Council, and a variety of interest groups.

All letters and emails should include the first and last name of the individual commenting and a complete mailing address.  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.

After the comment period ends on June 28, 2013, a proposed Final RMP/EIS will be issued.  Because these are combined planning efforts, separate Records of Decision (RODs) will be issued for the Billings Field Office and Pompeys Pillar NM.  Until the Final RMP/EIS ROD is signed, the Billings Field Office will continue to manage public land resources under the 1984 Billings RMP, as amended.

For more information, contact RMP Lead Carolyn Sherve-Bybee at (406) 896-5234.  For the latest BLM news and updates visit us on the web at: http://www.blm.gov/mt  and on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/BLMMontana.

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land – the most of any Federal agency.  This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska.  The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation.  In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs.  The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends.  In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget.  The BLM’s multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.  The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.