United States Department of the Interior 


BUREAU OF LAl'm MANAGEMENT 


Idaho State Office 


1387 South Vinnell Way 


Boise, Idaho 83709-1657 


In Reply Refer To: 

1610 (210) 

JUl 28 2010 

Dear Reader: 


Enclosed is the Jarbidge Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Environmental Impact 


Statement (EIS). The Draft RMPIEIS proposes and analyzes six alternatives for future 


management of approximately 1.4 million acres of Federal land in south-central Idaho and 


northern Nevada, which are administered by the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) Jarbidge 


Field Office. 


You are invited to review the document and provide written comments, which will be used to 


prepare the Proposed RMPlFinal EIS. Comments regarding the Draft RMPIEIS can be sent to: 


Jarbidge Planning Team 


BLM Jarbidge Field Office 


2536 Kimberly Road 


Twin Falls, ID 83301 


Sent via fax to: 


Jarbidge Planning Team at (208) 736-2375 


or sent via email to: 


ID _J arbidge_RMP@blm.gov 


Comment letters, faxes, and emails must include your complete name, address, and phone 


number. Anonymous comments will not be considered. Comments that include specific 


suggested changes, mention page numbers or management action codes (where appropriate), or 


cite sources are most helpful. Comments for this document must be received within 90 days 


from the date of the Environmental Protection Agency's publication of the Notice of Availability 


in the Federal Register. 


In developing the Draft RMPIEIS, the BLM considered issues raised throughout the planning 


process through: consultation with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes and the Shoshone-Paiute 


Tribes; recommendations from cooperating agencies and BLM resource specialists; planning 


criteria; and options to resolve resource conflicts. Based on the alternatives described and the 


associated analysis of impacts, Alternative IV is identified as the Preferred Alternative. 


Alternative IV contains two sub-alternatives with regard to Areas of Critical Environmental 


Concern (ACEC); with the preferred management for ACECs described in Alternative IV-B. 

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Designation of a Preferred Alternative does not represent a BLM decision and should not be 

viewed as the final outcome. Information received during the public comment period on the 

Draft RMPIEIS, new information, or changes in BLM policies or priorities may lead to a new or 

modified alternative being selected in the Proposed RMPlFinal EIS. For these reasons, it is 

essential that you carefully review all alternatives and consider the components of alternatives, 

rather than the alternatives in their entirety, when commenting, 

The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11; OPLMA) was signed 

into law on March 30, 2009. Title I, Subtitle F of this Act, entitled Owyhee Public Land 

Management, affects portions of the planning area by identifying new Wilderness and Wild and 

Scenic River (WSR) segments and releasing from further consideration areas previously 

identified as Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs) in Owyhee County, Idaho. Because the enactment 

occurred as the BLM was finalizing this Draft RMPIEIS, the Draft RMP/EIS includes 

descriptions of the new designations and released areas in a separately marked errata sheet at the 

front of Volume 1. Management for the No Action Alternative and all action alternatives 

described in the Draft RMP/EIS for WSAs and WSR suitable segments would be consistent with 

management for the newly designated Bruneau-Jarbidge Rivers Wilderness and designated 

WSRs. With several minor exceptions, the areas within the Bruneau-Jarbidge Rivers Wilderness 

and designated WSRs were formerly within WSAs and WSR suitable segments prior to their 

designation. For this reason and to avoid fUlther delay in its release, the Draft RMPIEIS does not 

reflect or quantify the distinction between WSAs and the Wilderness or between suitable and 

designated WSRs. The Proposed RMPlFinal EIS will incorporate the designations and 

management direction contained in OPLMA. More detail, including a reprint of the Title 1, 

Subtitle F, is contained in the errata sheet at the front of Volume I. 

To further assist the readers in providing comments, I would like to address two applicant-driven 

projects with specific EISs currently underway in the Jarbidge planning area: the China 

Mountain Wind Energy and Gateway West Transmission Line Projects. While related, these 

projects are being analyzed separately from the RMP through specific project-level EISs. 

Identification of a Preferred Alternative in the RMP process will not affect the agency's decision 

to proceed with separate analyses of these proposed projects. Each project will have a Draft EIS 

with specific public comment periods. 

Comments to the Draft RMPIEIS should not include comments specific to either the China 

Mountain Wind Energy or Gateway West Transmission Line Projects. Comments should 

address the goals, objectives, allocations, and management actions across the entire planning 

areas described in the Jarbidge Draft RMP/EIS. 

The BLM will hold several public meetings to discuss the Draft RMP/EIS. Dates, times, and 

locations of these meetings will be distributed in newsletters, announced in the local news media, 

and posted on the project websi te: 

http://www.blm.gov/id/st/en/prog/planning/jarbidge_resource.html. 
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Thank you for your participation in this planning effort. For additional information or 

clmification regarding this document or the planning process, please contact Aimee Betts, RMP 

Project Manager, at (208) 732-7405. 

JllY'ff~ 

Pct'd(L

Acting State Director 
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