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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 249 (Monday, December 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 106557-106559]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-31314]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[PO #4820000251]

BLM Director's Response to the Wyoming Governor's Appeal of the 
BLM Wyoming State Director's Governor's Consistency Review 
Determination for the Buffalo Field Office Proposed Resource Management 
Plan Amendment and Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of response.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is publishing this notice 
of the reasons for the BLM Director's determination to reject the 
Governor of Wyoming's recommendations regarding the Buffalo Field 
Office Proposed Resource Management Plan Amendment (RMPA) and Final 
Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS).

ADDRESSES: A copy of the Record of Decision and Approved RMPA is 
available on the BLM website at: https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2021239/570.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Heather Bernier, Division Chief for 
Decision Support, Planning, and National Environmental Policy Act; 
telephone 303-239-3635; address P.O. Box 151029, Lakewood, CO 80215; 
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 
for contacting Ms. Bernier. 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: On May 17, 2024, the BLM released the 
Proposed RMPA/Final SEIS for the Buffalo Field Office (89 FR 43431). In 
accordance with the regulations at 43 CFR 1610.3-2(e), the BLM 
submitted the Proposed RMPA/Final SEIS for the Buffalo Field Office to 
the Governor of Wyoming for a 60-day Governor's Consistency Review in 
order for the Governor to review the Proposed RMPA and identify any 
inconsistencies with State plans, policies, or programs. On July 16, 
2024, the Governor of Wyoming submitted a response for the Buffalo 
Field Office planning effort to the BLM Wyoming State Director. After 
careful consideration of the concerns raised in the Governor's 
response, the State Director decided not to accept the Governor's 
recommendations. The BLM sent a written response to the Governor on 
August 16, 2024.
    On September 12, 2024, the Governor of Wyoming appealed the State 
Director's decision to the BLM Director. In reviewing these appeals, 
the regulations at 43 CFR 1610.3-2(e) state that ``[t]he Director shall 
accept the (consistency) recommendations of the Governor(s) if he/she 
determines they provide for a reasonable balance between the state's 
interest and the national interest.'' On November 6, 2024, the BLM 
Director issued a response to the Governor detailing the reasons that 
the recommendations did not meet this standard. Pursuant to 43 CFR 
1610.3-2(e), the basis for the BLM's determination on the Governor's 
appeal is presented below. The appeal response is being published 
verbatim.
    ``I am in receipt of your letter dated September 12, 2024, which 
contains the State of Wyoming's appeal to the Bureau of Land Management 
(BLM) Wyoming State Director response to the Governor's consistency 
review of the Buffalo Field Office Proposed Resource Management Plan 
Amendment (PRMPA) and Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement 
(FSEIS). The Governor's consistency review is an important part of the 
BLM land use planning process, and we appreciate the significant time 
and attention that you and your staff have committed to this effort.

[[Page 106558]]

    The applicable regulations at 43 CFR 1610.3-2(e) provide you with 
the opportunity to appeal the State Director's decision to not accept 
the recommendations you made in your consistency review letter. These 
regulations also guide my review of the appeal, in which I must 
consider whether you have raised inconsistencies with State or local 
plans, policies, and or programs. If inconsistencies are raised, I 
would consider whether your recommendations address the inconsistencies 
and provide for a reasonable balance between the national interest and 
the State of Wyoming's interest.
    I have completed my review of your appeal and determined that the 
recommendation you have provided does not meet this standard for 
reasons as detailed in the following paragraphs.
    In your consistency review and subsequent appeal, you allege 11 
inconsistencies with State or local plans, policies, and programs. Your 
alleged inconsistencies are as follows:
     The No Leasing Alternative interferes with the Wyoming 
Constitution's policy of supporting public services with severance 
taxes from Federal coal development.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with State law 
requiring the optimization of its State trust lands.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with Wyoming 
Energy Policy.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with the 
Wyoming Environmental Quality Act.
     The No Leasing Alternative conflicts with the State's 
Interstate Compact Statute.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with the 
Natural Resource Protection Act.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with the 
Campbell County's Plan Principles.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with Campbell 
County's Plan Policy.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with Campbell 
County's Plan Goals.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with Campbell 
County's Plan Objectives.
     The No Leasing Alternative is inconsistent with the 
Johnson County Plan Objectives.
    To address these inconsistencies, it is your recommendation that 
the BLM adopt the No Action Alternative (Alternative B) for the Buffalo 
PRMPA. Upon review, I find that your recommendation does not present a 
reasonable balance between the national interest and the State's 
interest, because Alternative B is inconsistent with national policy.
    The Buffalo FSEIS/PRMPA was developed under the BLM's authority to 
manage coal under all the applicable statutes and regulations 
including, but not limited to; the Federal Land Policy and Management 
Act (FLPMA) of 1976, as amended; the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, as 
amended; the Mineral Leasing Act on Acquired Lands of 1947, as amended; 
and all applicable regulations developed from these statutes found in 
43 CFR 3000 and 3400.
    Section 102(a)(7) of FLPMA declares that it is the policy of the 
United States that management of the public lands be based on 
``multiple use'' and ``sustained yield.'' Section 103(c) of FLPMA 
defines ``multiple use'' as the management of the public lands and 
their various resource values so that they are used in the combination 
that will best meet the present and future needs of the American 
people. FLPMA's multiple-use policy does not require that all uses be 
allowed on all areas of the public lands. Through the land use planning 
process, the BLM evaluates and chooses an appropriate balance of 
resource uses that involves tradeoffs between competing uses, and the 
BLM has discretion to allocate the public lands to particular uses and 
to employ the mechanism of land use allocation to protect for certain 
resource values.
    As explained in the FSEIS/PRMPA, the BLM has determined that the 
economic benefits from coal leasing no longer balance with the adverse 
effects to other public land resources, including but not limited to, 
air quality and environmental justice, as well as social and economic 
considerations. In addition, the BLM has determined that continued coal 
leasing at any level in the planning area is no longer consistent with 
presidential executive orders and policies. For instance, continued 
coal leasing in the planning area is inconsistent with Presidential 
Executive Orders 13990, entitled, Protecting Public Health and the 
Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis, and 
14008, entitled, Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, as 
well as Department of the Interior Secretary's Order 3399, entitled, 
Department-Wide Approach to the Climate Crisis and Restoring 
Transparency and Integrity to the Decision-Making Process. These 
executive orders and policies direct agencies to, among other things, 
work on confronting the climate crisis to improve public health and the 
environment, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, increase renewable 
energy production on public lands and waters, and to review potential 
climate and other impacts from oil and natural gas development on 
public lands.
    As explained in the Buffalo FSEIS/PRMPA, the mining of coal in the 
planning area would continue to contribute to GHG emissions, which in 
turn adds to ongoing impacts from climate change on human health and 
disease in numerous ways (Buffalo FSEIS/PRMPA section 3.5.1). The BLM 
also determined that the potential environmental justice health-related 
impacts would be highest under Alternative B, and therefore, not in 
alignment with the Nation's interest in addressing climate-related 
public health concerns. Moreover, additional coal leasing in the 
planning area would not support the Nation's long term climate strategy 
(November 2021) of limiting global temperature rise and putting the 
U.S. on a pathway to net-zero GHG emissions by 2050. Coal production is 
in decline, both nationally and in the Wyoming Powder River Basin, 
where coal production has been declining since the late 2000's. As 
such, the Nation's energy market is moving away from coal towards 
natural gas and renewable energy, which are more aligned with the 
Nation's long term climate strategy, and continued coal leasing in the 
planning area would not support the national interest.
    Regarding Campbell County's Plan, the BLM did determine that the 
previous version of the Buffalo FSEIS/PRMPA (2019) was consistent with 
the 2022 Campbell County Natural Resource Land Use Plan. However, since 
that time, Federal policy direction regarding continued coal mining has 
shifted, as discussed above. As such, the BLM determined in this 
current planning effort that the 2022 Campbell County Natural Resource 
Land Use Plan is not consistent with Federal policies and executive 
orders applicable to BLM-administered lands.
    For these reasons outlined above, I find that your recommendation 
does not present a reasonable balance between the national interest and 
the State's interest.
    Your consistency review and subsequent appeal also alleged 12 
issues related to Federal laws, regulations, and policies including the 
Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, the Mineral Leasing Act 
of 1920, Federal Coal Leasing Amendments Act of 1976, the Surface 
Mining and Coal Reclamation Act, the Federal Coal Screening 
regulations, and others. These Federal issues do not raise 
inconsistencies with State or local plans, policies, or programs and 
are

[[Page 106559]]

outside the scope of the Governor's Appeal process.
    Finally, the BLM has prepared the Buffalo PRMPA/FSEIS in accordance 
with all applicable Federal laws, regulations, and policies. The BLM 
did carefully review and consider applicable State, local, and other 
Federal agency plans, policies, and programs in the development of the 
Buffalo PRMPA/FSEIS. The BLM is consistent, to the extent practicable, 
with these plans as per the provisions of FLPMA and the planning 
regulations at 43 CFR 1610-3-2.''

(Authority: 43 CFR 1610.3-2(e))

Nada Wolff Culver,
Principal Deputy Director.
[FR Doc. 2024-31314 Filed 12-27-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4331-22-P
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