APPENDIX K – LANDS AND REALTY
 

Section 102(a)(1) of the Federal Land Policy 

Management Act (FLPMA) provides that Congress 

declares that it is the policy of the United States that... 

“the public lands be retained in Federal ownership, 

unless as a result of the land use planning procedure 

provided for in this Act, it is determined that disposal of 

a particular parcel will serve the national interest;...” 

GENERAL INFORMATION PERTAINING TO 

LAND OWNERSHIP ADJUSTMENTS 

Land Exchanges 

This type of real estate transaction is typically processed 

under the authority of the FLPMA and involves the 

discretionary, voluntary exchange of lands or interests in 

lands between the Federal government and a nonFederal party. It is required that: 

• Sec. 206(b) - the Federal and non-Federal lands 

involved be located in the same state 

• Sec. 206(b) - the Federal and non-Federal lands be 

of equal value, or in certain circumstances, 

approximately equal in value 

• Sec. 206(a) - exchanges be completed only after a 

finding that the public interest would be well served 

In considering whether an exchange is in the public 

interest, consideration is given to the opportunity to: 

• Sec. 206(a) - achieve better management of Federal 

lands 

• Sec. 206(a) - meet the needs of state and local 

residents and their economies 

• Sec. 206(a) - secure important objectives, including 

but not limited to, protection of fish and wildlife 

habitats, cultural resources, watersheds, wilderness 

and aesthetic values; enhancement of recreation 

opportunities and public access; consolidation of 

lands and/or interests in lands; consolidation of split 

estate; expansion of communities; accommodation 

of land use authorizations; promotion of multipleuse values; and fulfillment of public needs 

In making the public interest determination, there needs 

to be a finding that: 

• the resource values and the public objectives that 

the Federal lands or interests to be conveyed may 

serve if retained in Federal ownership are not more 

than the resource values of the non-Federal lands or 

interests and the public objectives they could serve 

if acquired, and 

• the intended use of the conveyed Federal lands will 

not significantly conflict with established 

management objectives on adjacent Federal lands 

and Indian trust lands 

Land Exchanges vs. Other Methods of 

Disposal/Acquisition 

To help assure the integrity of state and local tax bases, 

land exchange would be the first priority for both 

acquisition of non-Federal land and the conveyance of 

Federal lands into non-Federal ownership of those 

parcels identified for disposal, except under the 

following circumstances: 1) where there is a 

competitive market situation and multiple entities are 

interested in a parcel of land, land sale may be 

considered, or 2) where one of the following situations 

apply, a disposal method other than exchange may be 

considered: a) resolving inadvertent unauthorized use or 

occupancy b) providing for community expansion and 

development c) meeting obligations completing state 

selections, and d) creating facilities or service for public 

health, safety and welfare. 

Sales 

Sales of public lands are authorized under section 203 of 

FLPMA and offered at not less than fair market value. 

Public lands determined suitable for sale are offered 

only on the initiative of the BLM. Such sales have to 

meet at least one of the following FLPMA sales criteria: 

• Sec. 203(a)1) – such tract because of its location or 

other characteristics is difficult and uneconomic to 

manage as part of the public lands, and is not 

suitable for management by another Federal 

department or agency; or 

• Sec. 203(a)(2) – such tract was acquired for a 

specific purpose and the tract is no longer required 

for that or any other Federal purpose; or 

• Sec. 203(a)(3) – disposal of such tract will serve 

important public objectives, including but not 

limited to, expansion of communities and economic 

development, which cannot be achieved prudently 

or feasibly on land other than public land and which 

outweigh other public objectives and values, 

including, but not limited to, recreation and scenic 

values, which would be served by maintaining such 

tract in Federal ownership. 

The preferred method of sale of public lands is by 

competitive bidding at public auction. However, 

modified competitive bidding may be used to protect ongoing uses, to assure compatibility of the possible uses 

with adjacent lands, or to avoid dislocation of existing 

users. Direct sale may be used when the public lands 

offered for sale are completely surrounded by lands in 

one ownership with no public access, or where the lands 

are needed by state or local governments or non-profit 

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Appendix K 

corporations, or where necessary to protect existing 

equities in the lands or resolve inadvertent unauthorized 

use or occupancy. 

Conveyance of Federally-Owned Mineral Interests – 

Section 209(b), FLPMA 

Section 209(b) of FLPMA provides for the conveyance 

of mineral interests owned by the United States where 

the surface is or will be in non-Federal ownership. There 

must be a finding that: 1) there are no known mineral 

values in the land, or 2) that the reservation of the 

mineral rights in the United States is interfering with or 

precluding appropriate non-mineral development of the 

land and that such development is a more beneficial use 

of the land than mineral development. 

Such conveyance of mineral interests can only be made 

to the existing or proposed record owner of the surface 

upon payment of administrative costs and the fair market 

value of the interests being conveyed. 

Direct Purchases 

Direct purchases of lands or interest in lands would be 

limited to cases where no practical alternatives exist, 

high public values would be obtained, and purchase 

funds are appropriated. Such actions would need to meet 

the acquisition criteria for the particular alternative being 

considered. 

Methods of Acquisition 

Acquisition of lands or interests in lands would be by 

methods such as exchange, purchase, donation, or public 

agency jurisdictional transfer. 

Methods of Disposal 

Disposal methods to implement land ownership 

adjustment actions would not vary by alternative, and 

generally would include the following: a) exchanges b) 

sales c) Recreation and Public Purposes Act 

conveyances d) airport grants e) public agency 

jurisdictional transfers f) state grants 

Mineral patents are not considered a land ownership 

adjustment for the purposes of this plan. 

LAND OWNERSHIP ADJUSTMENT CRITERIA 

Three types of land ownership adjustment criteria will 

be adopted (retention, disposal, and acquisition) to 

provide guidance in categorizing BLM administered 

land, and in making decisions concerning specific 

actions. 

General Criteria 

1. Requirements of applicable laws, executive orders, 

and regulations will be followed. 

2. Priority will be determined by the area directly 

impacted and the significance of the resources in 

descending order of National, regional, statewide, and 

local. Both economic and non-economic values will be 

considered in assessing resource significance. 

3. A critical level of significance will be assigned to 

resource values if they are adversely impacted over an 

area larger than the specific tract being considered for 

any land ownership adjustment action. 

4. Public value losses which cannot be mitigated will be 

assigned a higher level of significance than those which 

can be mitigated. 

5. A higher level of significance will be assigned to 

public values which are associated with solving chronic 

management problems. 

RETENTION CRITERIA 

These are land tracts which will likely remain as BLM 

administered land. Although the underlying philosophy 

is long-term public ownership, adjustments in retention 

areas involving exchanges and/or sales may occur when 

the public interest is served. 

1. Areas containing moderate to high resource values 

and/or characteristics. These include but are not limited 

to: 

• Land along rivers, streams, lakes, dams, ponds, 

springs, and trails 

• Riparian areas, community watersheds and/or flood 

plains 

• Areas that contain T&E species of wildlife or 

aquatic or vegetation 

• Areas with special status wildlife species, or aquatic 

species or vegetative species 

• Important general wildlife habitat areas 

• Recreation sites and areas 

• Significant cultural resource sites 

• Geologic areas containing unique or rare features or 

formations 

• Areas with important or unique forest/woodland 

values 

• Other areas containing moderate to high resource 

values and/or characteristics 

2. Lands with a combination of moderate to high 

multiple-use values which dictate retention in public 

ownership. 

3. Areas of National environmental significance: These 

include but are not limited to: 

• Wilderness, Wilderness Study Areas and former 

WSAs being studied for protective management 

• Wild & Scenic Rivers 

• National Scenic & Historic Trails and Study Trails 

870 Butte Draft RMP/EIS 
Lands and Realty 

• Lands containing nationally significant cultural 

resource sites nominated to or eligible for the 

National Register of Historic Places 

• National Conservation areas 

• Wetlands and Riparian Areas under Executive 

Order 11990 

• Other Congressionally Designated Areas and Study 

Areas 

• Areas of Critical Environmental Concern 

4. Areas of National economic significance. These 

include but are not limited to: 

• Designated Mineral Resource Areas where disposal 

of the surface would unnecessarily interfere with the 

logical development of the mineral estate, e.g., 

surface minerals, coal, phosphate, known geologic 

structures, etc. 

• Lands containing strategic minerals needed for 

National defense. 

5. Lands used in support of National defense: These 

include but are not limited to U.S. Military and National 

Guard maneuver areas. 

6. Areas where future plans will lead to further 

consolidation and improvement of land patterns and 

management efficiency. 

7. Areas which the general public, state and local 

government consider suitable for public ownership. 

8. Lands withdrawn by the BLM or other Federal 

agencies for which the purpose of the withdrawal 

remains valid and the resource uses can be managed 

concurrently by BLM. 

9. Lands that contribute significantly to the stability of 

the local economy by virtue of Federal ownership. 

10. Lands which provide public access and contain 

previously mentioned public values which, when 

considered together, warrant their retention. 

11. Guidelines for the retention of the mineral estate are 

fairly well described and are mandated under FLPMA. 

These require that the mineral estate be reserved by the 

U.S. in all land disposals except in some cases where 

exchanges are involved. In exchanges, the mineral estate 

may be reserved by both parties presuming there will be 

no material interference with development of the mineral 

resource due to disposal of the surface estate. If values 

are equal, mineral estate title may pass with the surface 

estate. 

ACQUISITION CRITERIA 

The following criteria will be used to evaluate proposals 

which would result in the acquisition of non-Federal 

lands and/or interest in lands through exchange, fee 

purchase, donation or other transactions. Priority will be 

determined on the basis of multiple-use analysis. The 

greater the number of resource programs and public 

values served, the higher the priority for acquisition. All 

proposals will be evaluated to determine if the nonFederal lands meet any of the following specific criteria: 

1. Contain moderate to high resource values and/or 

characteristics. 

• Land along rivers, streams, lakes, dams, ponds, 

springs, and trails 

• Riparian areas, community watersheds and/or flood 

plains 

• Areas that contain T&E species of wildlife or 

aquatic or vegetation 

• Areas with special status wildlife species, or aquatic 

species or vegetative species 

• Important general wildlife habitat areas 

• Recreation sites and areas 

• Significant cultural resource sites 

• Geologic areas containing unique and/or scarce 

features 

• Areas with important or unique forest/woodland 

values 

• Other areas containing moderate to high resource 

values and/or characteristics 

2. Have the potential for enhancement, manageability or 

investment opportunity of existing BLM administered 

lands. 

3. Facilitate access to BLM administered land retained 

for long-term public use. 

4. Enhance congressionally designated areas, rivers, or 

trails. 

5. Primarily focused in the "retention" areas. 

(Acquisition outside of retention areas may be 

considered if the action leads to and/or facilitates longterm needs or program objectives). 

6. Facilitate National, state and local BLM priorities or 

mission statement needs. 

7. Will enhance existing or future activity plans on BLM 

administered land. 

8. Stabilize or enhance local economies or values. 

9. Meet long-term BLM land management goals as 

opposed to short-term BLM land management goals. 

10. Are of sufficient size to improve use of adjoining 

BLM administered land or, if isolated, large enough to 

allow for the identified potential public land use. 

11. Allow for more diverse use, more intensive use, or a 

change in uses to better fulfill the Bureau's mission. 

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Appendix K 

12. Enhance the opportunity for new or emerging BLM 

administered land uses or values. 

13. Contribute to a wide spectrum of uses or large 

number of public land users. 

14. Secure for the public significant water related land 

interests. These interests will include lake shore, dam 

shore, river front, stream, and pond or spring sites. 

15. Consolidate mineral estates with surface estates to 

improve potential for development while improving 

resource management and economic values of existing 

BLM administered lands. 

Avoid the following when considering acquisition 

proposals: 

Acquiring lands or interests in lands that present 

management problems that outweigh the expected 

benefits of such an acquisition, including but not limited 

to: 

• presence of hazardous materials 

• abundance of noxious weeds 

• access situation is inadequate for managing the 

property for the purpose(s) for which it would be 

obtained, etc. 

• acquisition of small, isolated tracts 

ACCESS CRITERIA 

The BLM shall endeavor to maintain existing access, 

provide future access, and manage access to BLM 

administered lands in coordination with other Federal 

agencies, state and local governments, and private 

landowners. 

Specific Access Criteria 

1. Obtain access to BLM administered lands in retention 

areas. (Acquisition of access outside of retention areas 

may be considered if the action leads to and/or facilitates 

long term needs or program objectives). 

2. Protect, maintain, and manage existing access to BLM 

administered lands. 

3. Manage access to BLM administered lands within 

BLM's multiple-use mandate. 

4. Acquire access on the basis of the following 

considerations: 

• Where there are moderate to high resource values 

on existing BLM administered land. 

• Where there is public demand which is closely tied 

to resource values. 

• Access to larger blocks or parcels of BLM 

administered land have priority. The presence of 

important resource values may justify acquiring 

access to smaller tracts. 

• For those projects on BLM administered lands in 

which substantial public monies have been spent, 

and in which continuing diverse public use is 

expected, permanent exclusive access for the 

general public should be obtained. For lesser 

investment projects and/or those to which general 

public use will need to be limited, nonexclusive 

easements should be obtained. 

• Although the Bureau is not required to provide 

access to mineral resources, the acquisition of such 

access could be useful in controlling the 

construction of multiple and unnecessary access 

routes within the same general area. 

DISPOSAL CRITERIA 

These are lands identified for potential removal from 

BLM administration through transfer to other Federal 

agencies, or by exchange, sale or R&PP Patent to state, 

county or local public entities, or by exchange or sale to 

private entities, private groups, private organizations or 

individuals. Disposal decisions will be made in the 

public interest based upon the following criteria: 

1. Lands with high public values proper for management 

by other Federal agencies, or state or local governments. 

2. Small parcels of BLM administered land contiguous 

to National Forest land may be considered for transfer to 

the U.S. Forest Service through a Public Land Order. 

Other BLM administered land may be considered for 

transfer where appropriate. 

3. Small parcels of BLM administered lands contiguous 

to State land may be considered for transfer to the Sate 

of Montana. Other BLM administered land may be 

considered for transfer where appropriate. 

4. Lands of limited public value. 

5. Widely scattered parcels which are difficult and 

uneconomical to manage with anything beyond minimal 

custodial administration and have no significant public 

values. 

6. Lands which will serve important public objectives 

(such as community expansion) as provided in FLPMA. 

7. Lands where disposal would aid in aggregating or 

repositioning other BLM administered lands or land 

resource values in retention areas to facilitate National, 

state and local objectives. 

8. Lands acquired for a specific Federal purpose which 

are no longer required for that or any other Federal 

purpose. 

9. Lands with general unauthorized use problems, if the 

lands are not required for public purposes. 

10. Lands with unauthorized occupancy use where 

permanent structures are involved. 

872 Butte Draft RMP/EIS 
Lands and Realty 

Potential Disposal Parcels 

The following lands, totaling 6,818 acres, are potentially 

suitable for disposal through sale under section 203(a) of 

FLPMA if important recreation, wildlife, watershed, 

threatened or endangered species habitat, and/or cultural 

values are not identified during disposal clearance 

reviews and no viable exchange proposals for them can 

be identified. These lands would also be available for 

transfer to another agency or to local governments, as 

needed, to accommodate community expansion and 

other public purposes. 

Potential Disposal Parcels 

Legal Description Acreage 

T. 1 N., R. 6 W. 

Section 10 SW1⁄4SW 1⁄4 40.00 

Section 11 SW1⁄4SW 1⁄4 40.00 

Section 12 NW1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

Section 29 

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

NE1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

T. 1 N., R. 14 W. 

Section 10 Lot 3 43.89 

Section 28 NW1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

T. 2 N., R. 1 W. 

Section 2 

Lot 3 37.91 

Lot 4 37.81 

S1⁄2NW1⁄4 80.00 

Section 6 

Lot 1 40.70 

Lot 2 40.50 

Lot 3 40.30 

Lot 4 31.76 

Lot 5 32.32 

Lot 6 32.32 

Lot 7 33.59 

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

Section 34 

SE1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

S1⁄2SE1⁄4 80.00 

T. 3 N., R. 1 W. Section 32 N1⁄2 320.00 

T. 6 N., R. 4 W. 

Section 3 Segregated Survey 41.02 

Section 5 

Lot 12 38.54 

Lot 23 2.70 

Section 8 

Lot 3 30.56 

Lot 14 0.47 

T. 7 N., R. 3 W. Section 4 Lot 8 48.47 

T. 7 N., R. 4 W. 

Section 24 

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

NE1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

Section 35 Segregated Survey 8.5 est. 

Butte Draft RMP/EIS 873 
Appendix K 

Potential Disposal Parcels 

Legal Description Acreage 

T. 8 N., R. 3 W. 

Section 9 

Lot 6 2.27 

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

Section 10 

Lot 1 38.93 

Lot 6 1.79 

Lot 7 31.87 

Lot 10 29.34 

Lot 11 0.26 

Lot 16 19.74 

Section 15 NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 40.00 

Section 29 SE1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

Section 32 NW1⁄4NW1⁄4NW1⁄4 10.00 

T. 8 N., R. 4 W. 

Section 12 Metes & Bounds 5.00 est. 

Section 13 

NW1⁄4NW1⁄4 40.00 

Lot 1 39.39 

Section 14 

Lot 20 4.58 

Lot 21 4.15 

Lot 22 2.71 

Section 23 

Lot 15 5.87 

Lot 16 0.93 

Lot 17 6.94 

Lot 18 0.85 

T. 9 N., R. 2 W. 

Section 20 

Lot 7 2.36 

Lot 9 28.04 

Section 21 

Lot 2 31.33 

Lot 6 20.27 

Lot 7 0.22 

Lot 8 0.90 

Lot 9 0.90 

Lot 10 0.45 

Lot 5 0.12 

Section 22 Lot 6 19.46 

T. 9N., R. 3 W. Section 32 Lot 14 1.43 

T. 10 N., R. 1 W. Section 6 

metes and bounds .640 

metes and bounds .06 

metes and bounds .57 

Section 32 SE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

874 Butte Draft RMP/EIS 
Lands and Realty 

Potential Disposal Parcels 

Legal Description Acreage 

T. 10 N., R. 4 W. Section 36 Lot 41 (metes and bounds) .023 

T. 10 N., R. 5 W. 

Section 3 

Lot 22 18.09 

Lot 28 20.24 

Section 4 Lot 14 34.93 

Section 13 Lot 18 40.41 

T. 11 N., R. 4 W. Section 36 

Lot 2 20.31 

Lot 4 8.26 

Lot 6 .82 

Lot 7 6.27 

T. 11 N., R. 5 W. 

Section 15 Lot 3 17.73 

Section 16 Lot 5 44.09 

Section 27 Lot 4 43.69 

Section 34 

Lot 8 35.21 

Lot 9 28.32 

T. 12 N., R. 6 W. Section 36 Lot 35 (metes and bounds) .10 

T. 14 N., R. 3 W. Section 4 Lot 6 (metes and bounds) 3.89 

T. 1 N., R. 2 E. Section 14 W1⁄2W1⁄2 160.00 

T. 2 N., R. 2 E. Section 12 N1⁄2 320.00 

T. 3 N., R. 1 E. Section 12 NW1⁄4 160.00 

T. 3 N., R. 7 E. Section 30 E1⁄2NE1⁄4 80.00 

T. 4 N., R. 2 E. Section 34 SW1⁄4 160.00 

T. 4 N., R. 3 E. Section 26 SW1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

T. 4 N., R. 6 E. Section 6 

Lot 3 21.20 

Lot 4 15.76 

T. 5 N., R. 5 E. Section 26 NW1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

Section 34 N1⁄2NE1⁄4NE1⁄4 20.00 

N1⁄2S1⁄2NE1⁄4NE1⁄4 10.00 

N1⁄2NW1⁄4NE1⁄4 20.00 

N1⁄2S1⁄2NW1⁄4NE1⁄4 10.00 

E1⁄2NE1⁄4NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 5.00 

W1⁄2NW1⁄4NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 5.00 

NW1⁄4SW1⁄4NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 2.50 

NE1⁄4SE1⁄4NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 2.50 

N1⁄2NW1⁄4NW1⁄4 20.00 

N1⁄2S1⁄2NW1⁄4NW1⁄4 10.00 

S1⁄2NW1⁄4SW1⁄4 20.00 

Butte Draft RMP/EIS 875 
Appendix K 

Potential Disposal Parcels 

Legal Description Acreage 

SW1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

T. 6 N., R. 3 E. Section 20 W1⁄2SW1⁄4 80.00 

T. 8 N., R. 1 E. 

Section 8 NE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

Section 18 

NW1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 40.00 

E1⁄2NW1⁄4NW1⁄4 20.00 

T. 1 S., R. 1 W. Section 4 W1⁄2SE1⁄4 80.00 

T. 1 S., R. 6 W. 

Section 4 SW1⁄4NW1⁄4 40.00 

Section 12 

N1⁄2NE1⁄4 80.00 

NW1⁄4 160.00 

W1⁄2SW1⁄4 80.00 

SE1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

NE1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

S1⁄2SE1⁄4 80.00 

Section 14 All 640.00 

T. 2 S., R. 9 W. Section 24 NE1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

T. 2 S., R. 9 E. Section 24 SE1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

T. 1 S., R. 1 E. Section 14 NW1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

T. 2 S., R. 2 E. Section 3 NE1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

T. 2 S., R. 10 E. 

Section 2 SW1⁄4NW1⁄4 40.00 

Section 3 

SW1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

SE1⁄4 160.00 

Section 10 

NE1⁄4 160.00 

NE1⁄4NW1⁄4 40.00 

Section 17 

NE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

S1⁄2SW1⁄4NE1⁄4 20.00 

SE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

S1⁄2S1⁄2NW1⁄4 40.00 

S1⁄2 320.00 

Section 20 N1⁄2N1⁄2 160.00 

T. 2 S., R. 12 E. Section 27 NE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

T. 3 S., R. 12 E. Section 9 W1⁄2NW1⁄4 80.00 

T. 4 S., R. 8 E. Section 14 

NE1⁄4NE1⁄4 40.00 

S1⁄2NE1⁄4 80.00 

SE1⁄4 160.00 

T. 4 S., R. 9 E. Section 20 NW1⁄4SE1⁄4 40.00 

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Lands and Realty 

Potential Disposal Parcels 

Legal Description Acreage 

S1⁄2SE1⁄4 80.00 

Section 30 SW1⁄4 160.00 

Section 32 NW1⁄4SW1⁄4 40.00 

T. 6 S., R. 8 E. Section 9 S1⁄2,SE1⁄4SE 1⁄4, Tract 37 .70 

Butte Draft RMP/EIS 877