[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 6 (Friday, January 9, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 919-920]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-228]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[MT-066-09-1610-DR-024E]


Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision for the Upper 
Missouri River Breaks National Monument Resource Management Plan and 
Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of Availability.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announces the availability 
of the Record of Decision (ROD) and Approved Resource Management Plan 
(RMP) for the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument located in 
the Lewistown Field Office, Montana. The Montana State Director signed 
the ROD, which constitutes the final decision of the BLM and makes the 
Approved RMP effective immediately.

ADDRESSES: Copies of the ROD and Approved RMP are available upon 
request from the Field Manager, Lewistown Field Office, Bureau of Land 
Management, 920 Northeast Main Street, P.O. Box 1160, Lewistown, MT 
59457-1160 or via the internet at http://www.blm.gov/mt/st/en/fo/lewistown_field_office/um_rmp_process.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerry Majerus, Project Manager, Bureau 
of Land Management, 920 Northeast Main Street, P.O. Box 1160, 
Lewistown, MT 59457; or by telephone at (406) 538-1924.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Upper Missouri River Breaks National 
Monument is located in northcentral Montana in Blaine, Chouteau, 
Fergus, and Phillips Counties. The planning area addressed in the 
Approved RMP comprises about 375,000 acres of public land and about 
396,000 acres of federal minerals administered by the BLM Lewistown 
Field Office. The State of Montana and Blaine, Chouteau, Fergus, and 
Phillips Counties participated in development of the plan as 
cooperating

[[Page 920]]

agencies. The RMP addressed the following six major questions: (1) How 
will human activities and uses be managed? (2) What facilities and 
infrastructure are appropriate to provide visitor interpretation and 
administration of the Monument? (3) How will the BLM manage resource 
uses and protect the biological, historical, cultural, and visual 
values of the Monument? (4) How will Monument management be integrated 
with other agency and community plans? (5) How will transportation and 
access be managed? (6) How will Monument management affect economic and 
social conditions in the area?
    The Approved RMP was prepared under the authorities of the Federal 
Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) of 1976 and the National 
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. The Approved RMP is nearly 
identical to the Proposed Plan (Alternative F) presented in the 2008 
Proposed RMP/Final EIS. All decisions covered by the ROD are either 
land use planning decisions that were protestable under the planning 
regulations (43 CFR part 1610), or implementation decisions that are 
now appealable under the regulations discussed below.
    The BLM received 45 protest letters during the 30-day protest 
period provided for the Proposed RMP/Final EIS in accordance with 43 
CFR 1610.5-2. In response to the protests, the BLM Director decided to 
prohibit the personal collection of invertebrate fossils, petrified 
wood, and plant material except that managers and staff shall 
facilitate access to public lands for the purposes of Native American 
religious and traditional uses, such as gathering natural resources 
(BLM Manual 8120--Tribal Consultation under Cultural Resources .06.D. 
The Director also clarified the decision to carry forward the Cow Creek 
ACEC designation, adopted by reference the new transportation 
management terminology in Washington Office IM 2006-173, and made a few 
other minor adjustments and corrections. All of these changes are 
identified in the Modifications and Clarifications section of the ROD.
    The Governor of the State of Montana, in his letter dated March 31, 
2008, recommended six changes to the plan but did not identify any 
inconsistencies between the Proposed RMP and officially approved or 
adopted state or local plans, policies, and/or programs. All of the 
recommendations were considered previously in the public process and 
development of the Proposed RMP.
    The following decisions are subject to a separate appeals process: 
(1) All road designations; (2) all backcountry airstrip designations; 
(3) limiting the group to 20 boaters launching from Coal Banks or 
Judith Landing from June 15 to August 1; (4) the 2-night camping limit 
at Level 2 sites from June 15 to August 1, and (5) the motorized 
watercraft restrictions on the Upper Missouri National Wild and Scenic 
River. These decisions are implementation decisions and are appealable 
under 43 CFR part 4, subpart E. They are contained in the section 
Decisions Subject to a Separate Appeals Process of the ROD. Any party 
adversely affected by these five decisions may appeal within 30 days of 
publication of this Notice of Availability pursuant to 43 CFR, part 4, 
subpart E. The appeal should state the specific road, airstrip, and/or 
river segment, as identified in the Record of Decision and Approved 
RMP, on which the decision is being appealed. The appeal must be filed 
with the Lewistown Field Manager at the above listed address. Please 
consult the appropriate regulations (43 CFR, part 4, subpart E) for 
further appeal requirements.

    Authority: 43 U.S.C. 1712; 42 U.S.C 4332.

Gene R. Terland,
Montana State Director.
[FR Doc. E9-228 Filed 1-8-09; 8:45 am]
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