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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 229 (Wednesday, November 27, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 93650-93651]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-27678]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[BLM_MT_FRN_MO4500182720]

Notice of Availability of the Record of Decision and Approved 
Resource Management Plan Amendment for the Miles City Field Office, 
Montana

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

[[Page 93651]]

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announces the availability 
of the Record of Decision (ROD) for the Approved Resource Management 
Plan (RMP) Amendment for the Miles City Field Office located in Miles 
City, Montana. The BLM Director signed the ROD on November 20, 2024, 
which constitutes the decision of the BLM and makes the Approved RMP 
Amendment effective immediately.

DATES: The BLM Director signed the ROD/Approved RMP Amendment on 
November 20, 2024.

ADDRESSES: The ROD/Approved RMP Amendment is available online https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2021155/510. Printed copies of 
the ROD/Approved RMP Amendment are available for public inspection at 
the Miles City Field Office or can be provided upon request by 
contacting Irma Nansel, Project Manager, telephone (406) 233-3653; or 
at the address BLM Miles City Field Office, 111 Garryowen Road, Miles 
City, MT 59301; email [email protected].
    A copy of the Protest Resolution Report is available at: https://www.blm.gov/programs/planning-and-nepa/public-participation/protest-resolution-reports.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Irma Nansel, Project Manager, 
telephone (406) 233-3653; or at the address BLM Miles City Field 
Office, 111 Garryowen Road, Miles City, MT 59301; email 
[email protected]. Individuals in the United States who are deaf, 
deafblind, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability may dial 711 
(TTY, TDD, or TeleBraille) to access telecommunications relay services. 
Individuals outside the United States should use the relay services 
offered within their country to make international calls to the point-
of-contact in the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Approved RMP Amendment addresses a 
United States District Court for the District of Montana order (Western 
Organization of Resource Councils, et al. v. BLM; CV 00076-GF-BMM; 8/3/
2022). The Approved RMP Amendment changes the existing 2015 Miles City 
Approved RMP.
    The RMP Amendment approved by the ROD includes land use allocations 
of areas acceptable for further consideration for coal leasing and 
those that are not. The Approved RMP Amendment is Alternative D from 
the Final Supplemental EIS, which allocates zero acres of BLM 
administered coal as available, and 1,745,040 acres unavailable for 
further consideration for coal leasing within the Miles City Field 
Office planning area. The Approved RMP Amendment does not affect the 
area with coal development potential or the area determined to be 
suitable for surface coal mining.
    The Approved RMP Amendment includes the updated coal screens (43 
CFR 3420.1-4(e)) using current data and evaluated the issues identified 
through internal and public scoping. Application of coal screen 1 
(development potential) identified approximately 1,745,000 acres of 
BLM-administered coal as having development potential. The Approved RMP 
Amendment also addresses the NEPA deficiencies identified by the court 
order associated with the application of the multiple-use screen. 
Specifically, the application of a multiple-use climate change 
criterion that uses greenhouse gas emissions as a proxy for climate 
change. Reducing availability of BLM-administered coal for leasing 
consideration reduces the contribution of greenhouse gas emissions from 
the development and combustion of BLM-administered coal from the 
planning area.
    The BLM determined that additional leasing of BLM-administered coal 
is not necessary based on the current analysis in the Final 
Supplemental EIS. The analysis indicates that operating mines in the 
planning area have existing leases with sufficient coal reserves to 
maintain existing mine production levels until 2035 for Spring Creek 
Mine and 2060 for Rosebud Mine.
    The BLM published a notice of availability for the Draft 
Supplemental EIS and Potential RMP Amendment in the Federal Register on 
May 8, 2023, which initiated a 90-day comment period (88 FR 29689). On 
June 6th, the BLM hosted a public meeting at the BLM Miles City Field 
Office in Miles City, Montana, to present the Draft Supplemental EIS 
and RMP Amendment to the public and solicit comments. The BLM also 
hosted an on-line public meeting on June 7, 2023. Eight members of the 
public attended the on-line meeting. During the public comment period, 
the BLM received 14 unique written submissions containing 167 
substantive comments. The Draft Supplemental EIS comments helped the 
BLM refine the Final Supplemental EIS and guided the development of the 
Proposed RMP Amendment.
    The BLM provided the Proposed RMP Amendment for public protest on 
May 17, 2024 (89 FR 43432), for a 30-day protest period, and received 
seven valid protests. The BLM Assistant Director for Planning and 
Resources resolved all protests. Responses to protest issues were 
compiled and documented in a Protest Resolution Report (see ADDRESSES). 
No changes were made to the Approved RMP Amendment as a result of 
protest resolution.
    The BLM provided the Proposed RMP Amendment to the Governor of 
Montana for a 60-day Governor's consistency review. There were no 
inconsistencies with State or local plans, policies, or programs 
identified during the Governor's consistency review of the Proposed RMP 
Amendment. The State Director made no changes to the Proposed RMP 
Amendment as a result of the Governor's review. On September 18, 2024, 
the Governor submitted an appeal to the BLM Director on the State 
Director's response to the Governor's consistency review. In accordance 
with planning regulations (1610.3-2), the Director notified the 
Governor on November 6, 2024, of the reasons for the determination to 
reject the Governor's recommendations.

(Authority: 40 CFR 1506.6; 43 CFR 1610.5-1)

Tracy Stone-Manning,
BLM Director.
[FR Doc. 2024-27678 Filed 11-26-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-20-P
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